Offset Jaw Suture Clamp for Needle Alignment Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Suturing in surgical procedures faces challenges with needle misalignment and instability, leading to increased fatigue and prolonged surgery times, especially in minimally invasive procedures where precise control and alignment are difficult to maintain.
Innovation Solution
A suturing device with a clamp mechanism that holds the needle between opposing grasping surfaces and contacts it at a second location axially offset from the initial grasp, providing stability and alignment through a needle contacting surface that inhibits unintended movement, allowing for precise control and reduced strain on the surgeon.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a needle grasping tool is used to hold the needle during suturing, then the surgeon can manipulate the needle through tissue, but the needle may slip or pivot about the grasp point causing misalignment
Solution Approach 1:
The clamp contacts the needle at two distinct locations along the needle's length (first and second locations), creating a multi-point constraint system that prevents pivoting and slipping in multiple dimensions simultaneously
Solution Approach 2:
The clamp is pre-configured with offset contacting surfaces positioned at specific axial locations before the suturing procedure begins, ensuring proper needle alignment is established in advance and maintained throughout the procedure
2Reliability
If the surgeon manually realigns the needle by grasping it with their hand, then needle alignment can be restored, but tissue contamination and needle perforation risks increase
Solution Approach 1:
The clamp's offset contacting surfaces automatically maintain needle alignment through mechanical constraint without requiring the surgeon to manually grasp or adjust the needle, making the system self-correcting and eliminating the need for harmful manual realignment
3Device complexity
If standard needle grasping tools are used, then the device structure remains simple, but needle misalignment requires time-consuming realignment that increases surgery duration
Solution Approach 1:
The clamp structure is segmented into distinct components (first and second offset contacting surfaces at different axial locations) that work together to provide multi-point needle constraint, achieving improved alignment stability through modular design
Data Source
AI summary
Improved medical suturing devices, systems, and methods for maintaining a position and orientation of a suture needle at a fixed location relative to a suturing device. An exemplary device include a clamp having opposing grasping surfaces for grasping the needle at a first location, and a needle contacting surface for contacting the needle at a second location, the second location a distance axially away from the first location so as to inhibit unintended movement of the needle relative to the device, which may include rotation of the needle about the first location and rotation of the needle about its axis. In many embodiments, the device includes a first and second clamp and a mechanism for alternating grasping of the needle between the first and second clamp. The device may also be incorporated into a single-clamp needle grasping device.