Patent ID: 8256331

Claim:
A method for unguarding and guarding a surgical knife, comprising: providing a guarded surgical knife comprising: a handle portion comprising a blade holder adapted to hold a blade, a chamber within the handle portion, and a slot; a guard having an open distal end slidably mounted within the chamber of the handle portion and operable to slide longitudinally between an unguarded position and a guarded position, wherein the guard is sized to surround the blade in the guarded position; a latch operable to latch the guard when the guard is slid into the guarded position, wherein the latch is provided on the guard; a first button operable to disengage the latch; a bias member configured to force the guard in a proximal direction into the unguarded position when the latch is disengaged; a second button connected to the guard and extending through the slot and operable to slide the guard in a distal direction into the guarded position; and a detent provided on the handle portion, the detent engaging with the latch in the guarded position; disengaging the latch using the first button to allow the bias member to force the guard in the proximal direction; and sliding the guard to the guarded position using the second button to re-engage the latch.