摘要:
This invention is a fused loop (10) of an elongated material such as a surgical suture, and apparatus for making the loop. Portions of one or more segments (12) to be joined together are fused in a welding process to form a welded joint (14). The shear area of the fused portion (20) of the joint (14) determines the strength of the joint (14), and is thus preferably relatively large. Various configurations for the welding apparatus facilitate the creation of relatively large fused portions (20) of the joint (14) by maximizing contact between at least one of the welding members of the apparatus, and at least one of the segments (12) to be joined.
摘要:
A welding apparatus that includes a first member having a first suture-contacting surface, a second member having a second suture-contacting surface, and a device for moving the first member relative to the second member to define a gap between the respective suture-contacting surfaces. The first member is capable of vibrating and delivering mechanical energy at ultrasonic frequencies. The second member is stationary relative to the first member. A fixture element is adapted to receive and maintain two or more segments of a material to be welded in a predetermined alignment in the gap between the first and second surfaces of the first and second members during a welding operation. According to another aspect of the invention, an ultrasonic welding apparatus includes first and second members with patterned first and second suture-contacting surfaces. The patterned surfaces can be complementary or non-complementary and the surface patterns on each member may vary in either a periodic or a non-periodic manner.
摘要:
A fused loop of an elongated material, such as a surgical suture, and apparatus for making the loop. Portions of one or more segments to be joined together are fused in a welding process to form a welded joint. The shear area of the fused portion of the joint determines the strength of the joint and is thus preferably relatively large. Various configurations for the welding apparatus facilitate the creation of relatively large fused portions of the joint by maximizing contact between at least one of the welding members of the apparatus and at least one of the segments to be joined.
摘要:
A fused loop of an elongated material, such as a surgical suture, and apparatus for making the loop. Portions of one or more segments to be joined together are fused in a welding process to form a welded joint. The shear area of the fused portion of the joint determines the strength of the joint and is thus preferably relatively large. Various configurations for the welding apparatus facilitate the creation of relatively large fused portions of the joint by maximizing contact between at least one of the welding members of the apparatus and at least one of the segments to be joined.
摘要:
A single-piece soft tissue fixation device includes an elongated element terminating in a tip at one end and a receptacle at the other end which bond with each other in a welded joint. The device is made of a heat-bondable, biocompatible material that can be ultrasonically or thermally welded. The tip and receptacle of the device can be textured or contoured or otherwise complementarily configured to promote mutual engagement prior to and during bonding. The tip can include a needle or needle-like extension for penetrating tissue. The device may be at least partially resorbable in living tissue.
摘要:
A fused loop of an elongated material, such as a surgical suture, and apparatus for making the loop. Portions of one or more segments to be joined together are fused in a welding process to form a welded joint. The shear area of the fused portion of the joint determines the strength of the joint and is thus preferably relatively large. Various configurations for the welding apparatus facilitate the creation of relatively large fused portions of the joint by maximizing contact between at least one of the welding members of the apparatus and at least one of the segments to be joined.
摘要:
A connector for detachably securing an end of a tube, such as a catheter, to a fluid port of a fluid transfer device, such as an implantable device, the connector having a body part which defines a coupler for coupling to a coupler receiver of the transfer device. The connector includes a sleeve which fits within the body part and defines an aperture for compressively receiving an end of the tube which has been fitted over a fluid port of the transfer device. The body part is rotatable about the sleeve to facilitate coupling of the coupler and coupler receiver. In one embodiment the sleeve has an inner diameter at one end large enough to slide freely over the tube when it is fitted over the fluid port, and the diameter decreases at an intermediate point along the length of the sleeve to provide for compressive axial movement of the tube to form an annular thickness portion of the tube where it abuts the face of the transfer device.
摘要:
A suture anchor for securing soft tissue to bone may include a threaded body, a head extending along a longitudinal axis, and a plurality of eyelets that extend though the anchor head and that are each configured to receive a suture. The eyelets are offset from one another along an axis that is transverse to the longitudinal axis of the suture anchor. Each eyelet may have a desired shape and cross section. Surgical kits including one or more suture anchors and one or more surgical tools are also described.
摘要:
A prosthetic cardiac valve assembly for sutureless implantation in a patient. The assembly includes a generally disk-shaped valve annulus element and one or more generally disk-shaped retainer elements. The elements are adapted for mutual engagement and for engagement with a host tissue region so as to fix a portion of the host tissue between them in a sutureless bond. Ultrasonic or thermal energy is applied to one or more of the elements to bond them together. Either the valve annulus element or the retainer element includes a plurality of projections, and the corresponding element includes a corresponding plurality of apertures for receiving the projections, thus providing for mutual physical engagement. The valve annulus element can include a plurality of valve leaflets which open and close in response to fluid pressure differentials across them. Various insertion devices for the assembly are designed to facilitate insertion of the elements in the heart through a relatively small incision. The elements can be implanted, assembled and bonded together in situ around the host tissue.
摘要:
A soft tissue fixation assembly comprises an anchor element which is installed in a bone or other tissue, and a joiner element which mates with the anchor element to define a tissue capture region between them. A section of soft tissue is held within the tissue capture region, and energy is transmitted into the joiner element to cause relative vibratory motion between the respective components and localized melting of the contacting portions of the respective components to establish a welded joint. The soft tissue segment is thus fixed to the bone without sutures or other fasteners.