Patent ID: 8777986

Claim:
An incision guide and wound closure device comprising: a surgical mesh having a plurality of pores, a top surface and a bottom surface; a first incision guide affixed to said top surface of said surgical mesh, said first incision guide having a first end, a second end, and a first alignment surface extending between said first and second ends thereof; a second incision guide affixed to said top surface of said surgical mesh adjacent said first incision guide, said second incision guide having a first end, a second end, and a second alignment surface extending between said first and second ends thereof that opposes said first alignment surface of said first incision guide; a closing element engageable with said first and second incision guides, said closing element being moveable between said first and second ends of said respective first and second incision guides for drawing said first and second alignment surfaces toward one another; said closing element including an elongated core having an elongated slat, the elongated slot having a top surface and a bottom surface that opposes said top surface of said surgical mesh, said elongated slat having a proximal end, a distal end, and an opening spaced from said proximal end of said elongated slat that extends from said top surface to said bottom surface of said elongated slat, said closing element including a slideable element having an attachment flange engageable with said opening of said elongated slat for connecting said slideable element and said elongated core together, wherein said connected slideable element overlies said top surface of said elongated slat and is slideable over said first and second incision guides for pulling said elongated core through said first and second incision guides so as to draw said first and second incision guides together; a first adhesive covering said bottom surface of said surgical mesh for forming a relatively weaker bond between said surgical mesh and a skin surface for facilitating initial placement and alignment of said surgical mesh atop said skin surface, wherein after said surgical mesh has been bonded to said skin surface using said first adhesive, said first adhesive enables said surgical mesh to be peeled away from and repositioned atop said skin surface for aligning said surgical mesh atop said skin surface; a second adhesive passable through said plurality of pores of said surgical mesh for forming a relatively stronger bond between said surgical mesh and said skin surface than is formed by said first adhesive, wherein said second adhesive is utilized only after said surgical mesh is properly aligned atop said skin surface.