Patent ID: 7402166

Claim:
A medical device comprising: a body having a tapered distal end; a lumen extending from a first lumen opening formed in the body to a second lumen opening formed in the body; a first needle guide channel extending from a first needle guide channel opening formed in the body to a second needle guide channel opening formed in the body; and a needle having a leading end and a trailing end, the trailing end of the needle being connected to a length of suture, the leading end of the needle being the first end of the needle that will penetrate tissue during a procedure, the needle being backloaded into the first needle guide channel such that the tapered distal end of the body is closer to the leading end of the needle than to the trailing end of the needle, the length of suture being threaded through the lumen such that the needle will be advanced out of the first needle guide channel by pulling on a portion of the length of suture that is unsurrounded by the medical device and positioned outside of the body; the medical device being configured such that the first needle guide channel opening and the second needle guide channel opening will be directly exposed to a patient when the medical device is used during a procedure.