Patent ID: 8172839

Claim:
A patent foramen ovale closing device for bringing septum primum and septum secundum into contact with each other and joining them together, comprising: a catheter dimensioned to be positioned in a living body and advanced into an atrium of a heart; a needle part slidably positioned inside the catheter for puncturing the septum primum; a clamping member mounted on the catheter and cooperable with the needle part to clamp, between the clamping member and the needle part, tissue of the septum primum and the septum secundum; energy supplying means operatively connected to at least one of the needle part and the clamping member for supplying energy to join the tissue clamped between the needle part and the clamping member; a main tube passing through the catheter and operable externally to axially move the main tube relative to the catheter; an operating member extending through the main tube so as to be axially movable forwards and rearwards, the operating member protruding distally beyond a distal end of the main tube; an intermediate sleeve body and a tip sleeve body positioned coaxially with respect to the operating member; a contact member mounted at a distal end portion of the operating member to be brought into contact with the tip sleeve body upon axially moving the operating member, the contact member being positioned distally of the tip sleeve body and the intermediate sleeve body; a first elastic wire member connecting the main tube and the intermediate sleeve body; a second elastic wire member connecting the intermediate sleeve body and the tip sleeve body; a third elastic wire member connecting the intermediate sleeve body and the tip sleeve body; the first elastic wire member being deformed radially outwardly when the operating member is axially moved in a proximal direction so that the first elastic wire member makes elastic contact with an inner edge of the patent foramen ovale to position the needle part; the second elastic wire member being curved by further axially moving the operating member in the proximal direction to thereby hold the septum primum by the tip sleeve body and the contact member; and the third elastic wire member curving outwardly during the axial movement of the operating member in the proximal direction to smooth out creases present in the septum primum.