Reversible Tissue Clamp for Fluid-Tight Incision Closure
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current medical clamps do not efficiently and reversibly join opposing edges of surgical incisions or wounds, leading to issues such as excessive fluid loss, tissue damage, and complications like retinal detachment during minimally invasive procedures.
Innovation Solution
A surgical instrument with a clamp having resiliently biased jaws that can be manually opened and closed, featuring a handle that maintains parallel alignment and includes alignment guides and suture slots for precise closure and reopening, allowing repeated use during procedures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual suturing is used to close wounds, then secure closure is achieved, but the procedure is time-consuming and may damage tissue
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the manual suturing mechanical system with a spring-loaded clamp mechanism. The clamp uses elastic potential energy stored in a compressed spring to automatically apply closing force to wound edges, eliminating the need for manual needle passage and knot tying while maintaining secure closure.
Solution Approach 2:
The clamp is designed to be self-applying and self-holding. Once positioned at the wound site, the compressed spring automatically generates the closing force without requiring continuous manual intervention. The ratchet mechanism provides self-locking to maintain closure pressure throughout the procedure.
2Reliability
If surgical clips are used to occlude blood vessels, then hemostasis is achieved, but the clips are typically permanent and cannot be easily removed
Solution Approach 1:
The clamp transitions from a static permanent clip to a dynamic reversible system. The ratchet mechanism allows unidirectional closing (preventing accidental opening) while permitting controlled opening when needed. This dynamic capability enables the clamp to provide reliable hemostasis during surgery while allowing easy removal afterward if required.
Solution Approach 2:
The ratchet mechanism serves as an intermediary between the spring loading system and the clamping jaws. It mediates the force transmission while providing the reversible locking function, allowing the clamp to maintain secure closure during surgery but be easily opened when the procedure is complete.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If multiple small incisions are made for minimally invasive surgery, then surgical tissue damage is reduced, but fluid loss occurs through the incisions leading to complications
Solution Approach 1:
The clamp merges multiple small incision sites into a single closed structure. By clamping the edges of the scleral incision together, it creates a unified fluid-tight barrier that prevents vitreous humor leakage while maintaining the benefits of a minimally invasive approach.
Solution Approach 2:
The clamp's jaws are designed with smooth, tissue-friendly surfaces that conform to the scleral incision edges. This flexible adaptation creates an effective seal across the incision opening, preventing fluid loss while minimizing disruption to the surrounding ocular tissues.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The clamp provides secure, fluid-tight closure of incisions, maintains intraocular pressure, and facilitates precise suture placement, minimizing complications and enabling repeated access during surgeries like vitreoretinal procedures.
Implementation Method 1
a handle connects the first and second jaws and has a resilient bias that biases the first and second jaws into a substantially closed position
Data Source
AI summary
A surgical clamp for aligning the margins of incised or wounded tissue has jaws with parallel clamping faces, and a handle for manipulating the clamp to align the margins of the tissue. The jaws are in a normally closed position, however they can be opened by compressing the handle to open the jaws. Prongs project from the inferior surface of the jaws. The clamp is positioned in a desired position over the margins of a wound to be closed, the prongs engage the margins of the wound to be aligned, and the jaws are closed by releasing compressive force on the handle. As the jaws close the prongs help move the tissue into alignment. Suture guide slots through the jaws assist in the placement of precisely placed sutures across the incision. The disclosed surgical clamp is particularly suited for selectively closing and reopening surgical incisions, such as a sclerotomy incision in the eye. Methods are disclosed for using the clamp during intraocular and other surgical or minimally invasive procedures. In one example the clamp is used during implantation into the retina of a scaffold on which choroid and retinal pigment epithelium cells and retina grow in a three-dimensional matrix that mimics the native structure of the retina.