Patent ID: 8157839

Claim:
A system for non-invasively closing a tissue opening, the system comprising: an assembled pair of substantially identical closure components, each component having: a strip with a preapplied adhesive layer on a first side thereof to affix the strip to the skin; an assembly mounted on a second side of the strip; a toothed pull-tab coupled to the strip through the assembly and defining a longitudinal axis, the assembly having a forward face to which the pull-tab is affixed and an opposed rearward face, the forward face including a sloped portion that is sloped rearward as it approaches the strip; a female connective element mounted on the second side of the strip and built into the assembly for receiving and releasably engaging a pull-tab from the other component and into which the pull-tab from the other component has been placed; wherein each pull tab has a length sufficient to reach and be received by the female connective element of the other closure component; and so that, when the assembled pair is affixed to the skin in a manner so that each of the strips is disposed on an opposite side of the tissue opening, the pull tabs can be used to close the opening non-invasively while causing substantial contact of the sloped portions of the forward faces of the components with one another and reliably introducing eversion of tissue edges that defined the opening, when each assembly pivots about a location of contact of each forward face thus causing lifting of the forward faces resulting in upward traction of the tissue edges.