Patent ID: 7520883

Claim:
An apparatus for joining a first body vessel and a second body vessel, comprising: a) a tubular body having a proximal end, a distal end and an onion portion integral to the tubular body, formed near the distal end of the tubular body, and configured for engaging the first body vessel, the onion portion having a first position and a second position extending outside a radial dimension of the tubular body; b) an inner tube disposed within the tubular body and at least partially within the onion portion, the inner tube being slidably movable to deploy the onion portion from the first position to the second position, the inner tube defining a plurality of passages; c) a plurality of needles, each needle being disposed in one of the plurality of passages; and d) a firing assembly for deploying the needles from the passages, the firing assembly including a first firing mechanism configured for distal movement to deploy at least one of the needles in a distal direction, and a second firing mechanism configured for proximal movement to deploy at least one of the needles in a proximal direction.