Patent ID: 7169129

Claim:
An apparatus for performing a tracheotomy, comprising: an applicator base that has an aperture that is located over the trachea upon the applicator base being placed on the neck of a patient; a firing mechanism fixed relative to the applicator base and having a cutting instrument and grommet such that when the firing mechanism is triggered, the cutting instrument and grommet are propelled through the aperture to puncture the trachea and insert the grommet into the puncture site; and an actuator that triggers the firing mechanism upon receiving application of manual force by a user; wherein the applicator base comprises means for aligning the applicator base and the aperture to the trachea and means for distributing manual force applied to the actuator to the neck of the patient on each side of the trachea to resist lateral movement of the applicator base relative to the trachea during the triggering of the firing mechanism.