Patent ID: 7322161

Claim:
An apparatus for winding an armed suture comprising: a base member; a needle holder disposed in a region of the base member; at least one needle having a quantity of a suture attached thereto, the at least one needle being adapted for releasable engagement with the needle holder; a first array and a second array, the first and second arrays disposed substantially along a longitudinal axis of the base member and spaced apart from each other wherein each array includes at least one upstanding rod; a retainer package including a first member, the first member including a number of throughholes corresponding to the at least one rod of each array; and a holder having open and closed states, the holder being positionable relative to the base member wherein a first arm of the holder is spaced apart from a second arm of the holder to define the open state and a portion of the first arm is in substantial contact with a portion of the second arm to define the closed state.