Patent ID: 7169168

Claim:
An assembly for introduction into an incision and for sealing an opening in the wall of a blood vessel having a vessel wall with inner and outer wall surfaces and a preexisting hollow interior, said assembly comprising: a sheath arranged to be placed inside said incision and directed to the opening in the wall of the blood vessel; an occlusion element, arranged to be inserted through said sheath into and through the opening in the wall of the blood vessel for disposition within the preexisting hollow interior of the blood vessel, said occlusion element not serving to form the preexisting hollow interior of the blood vessel; a retaining thread having a distal section and a proximal section, said distal section being arranged to be inserted through said sheath into and through the opening in the wall of the blood vessel, said distal section being attached to said occlusion element, said proximal section being arranged to remain proximal to the opening in the blood vessel, whereupon a portion of said retaining thread bridges the wall of the blood vessel through the opening, said retaining thread being further arranged to apply force to said occlusion element to cause the engagement of said occlusion element with the inner wall surface of the blood vessel while said occlusion element remains within the preexisting hollow interior of the blood vessel; and a locking element, arranged to be slidably mounted on said retaining thread to apply force to the outer wall surface of the blood vessel to produce tension in said retaining thread confined to the portion of said retaining thread bridging the wall of the blood vessel.