Patent ID: 8685043

Claim:
A medical device, comprising: an elongated sheath extending from a first end accessible to a user in an operative configuration to a distal end configured to open to target tissue in a living body in the operative configuration; and a tissue grasping mechanism removably housed within the elongated sheath, the tissue grasping mechanism comprising first and second arms, first ends of the first and second arms being pivotally attached to one another at a first hinge and second ends of the first and second arms being pivotally attached to one another at second hinge spaced from the first hinge, the first and second hinges defining a single axis about which the first and second arms move, wherein the tissue grasping mechanism is movable between a closed configuration in which the first and second arms are drawn together and an open configuration wherein the first and second arms are radially separated from one another by a distance greater than that in the closed configuration.