Patent ID: 7887564

Claim:
A method to facilitate healing of a wound, the method comprising: providing an apparatus for applying a force to margins of said wound, said apparatus comprising a body having at least one aperture extending radially through said body; rotatably coupling a shaft to said body, said shaft having at least one aperture and/or slot capable of being aligned with said at least one aperture in said body; placing said body and said shaft within a cavity of said wound; attaching a first end of at least one suture to a first side of said wound; passing a second end of said at least one suture through said body and said shaft; attaching said second end of said at least one suture to a second side of said wound; covering the wound and the apparatus with a wound cover; applying the force to the margins of the wound with said apparatus by rotating said shaft with respect to said body to pull said first side of said wound and said second side of said wound toward one another; and applying suction to said wound to extract exudates from said wound and facilitate healing of the wound.