Patent ID: 7422137

Claim:
A surgical instrument for performing an anastomosis, which comprises: a housing; a fastener support member attached to the housing configured and dimensioned to releasably retain a plurality of surgical fasteners; an actuating assembly operatively associated with the fastener support member to facilitate deformation of at least a portion of the surgical fasteners, wherein the actuating assembly attaches at one end to a handle and attaches at an opposite end to a pusher member mounted to the fastener support member such that movement of the actuating assembly reciprocates the pusher member which, in turn, reciprocates the fastener support member to deform at least a portion of the surgical fastener; a firing piston having a proximal end which engages and couples with the pusher member upon activation of the actuating assembly and a hammer portion which closely abuts each of the surgical fasteners to deform at least a portion of the surgical fasteners upon movement of the actuating assembly, wherein the pusher member includes at least one pusher hammer located at the distal end thereof and the firing piston includes at least one corresponding hammer capture located at the proximal end thereof such that upon activation of the actuating assembly, the pusher hammer engages the hammer capture and locks the pusher member to the firing piston and upon release of the actuating assembly, both the pusher member and the firing piston retract proximally; and a tissue retaining mechanism which is selectively operable to retain tissue adjacent the surgical fasteners prior to deformation.