Electro-cauterizing dissector and method for facilitating breast implant procedure
US5630813A · kind A · utility
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Dec 8, 1994 |
| Grant date | May 20, 1997 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Dec 8, 2014 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
- CPC primaryA61F2/12
- WIPO fieldMedical technology
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
An inflatable dissector and method for bluntly dissecting and electro-cauterizing a plane between the anterior chest wall and the overlying pectoralis major muscle to facilitate a breast implant procedure. The instrument includes an elongate blunt-tipped probe member and carries a distal expandable sleeve with an electrode grid on its surface. The blunt tip of the guide is advanced distally along a plane in the interior of the body thereby creating a small diameter dissected track. The distal inflatable sleeve is expanded to dissect the plane and an electrical current is introduced into the electrode grid to cauterize around the surface of the dissected space. A dual-port cannula assembly and an electro-cauterizing "inside-out" trocar are provided to safely make an additional incision under endoscopic vision from the inside of the dissected plane to the outside of the body from a single skin incision.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.