Surgical retractor and surgical method
US5339801A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 12, 1992 |
| Grant date | Aug 23, 1994 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Mar 12, 2012 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
- CPC primaryA61B2017/2936
- WIPO fieldMedical technology
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A surgical retractor having a plurality of widenable and narrowable blades of substantial width, having tissue-contacting surfaces that are not significantly narrower, in a collapsed position, than a guide tube for guiding the retractor blades through a surgical access port to a surgical site during a minimally invasive surgical procedure. Each retractor blade includes a relatively large, preferably planar, tissue-contacting surface for displacing or repositioning internal body tissue, such as an internal organ, for temporary displacement away from the surgical site. After insertion through a surgical access port one or more of the retractor blades can be widened laterally to substantially space distal ends of the retractor blades apart for maximum contact against and over a substantial area of the tissue to be displaced during the surgical procedure. After completion of the operative procedure, the retractor blades can be narrowed by nesting the blades together and the retractor can be easily and safely withdrawn from the access port.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.