Surgical Stick

Abstract

A surgical stick formed in one piece of a resilient material and having a pair of elongated clip members extending from the gripping portion and capable of being separated for the insertion of absorbent material therebetween and of being locked together for retaining securely the absorbent material.

Description

This invention relates to improvements in surgical sticks, that is to say, surgical instruments used for handling absorbent sponges, gauze or the like, and more particularly to an inexpensive surgical stick having the absorbent material preassembled therein.

The conventional surgical sticks in use today are metal scissor-like instruments which must be cleaned and sterilized before each use. The scissor-like operation of the instrument makes it possible for the surgeon to pick up an absorbent sponge or gauze and retain it between the clamped jaws of the instrument.

The surgical stick of the present invention is formed in one piece of a resilient material and includes a pair of elongated clip members extending from a gripping portion, a pair of oppositely facing jaws at the ends of the clip members for holding an absorbent sponge or gauze between them while the clip members are free to be spread apart, and means for locking the clip members together for retaining securely the absorbent material between the jaws.

The surgical stick of the present invention is not only inexpensive and disposable, but it is capable of being sterilized with the absorbent material preassembled between the jaws thereof and then packaged so that it is ready for use by the surgeon.

For a more complete understanding of the invention reference can be made to the detailed description which follows and to the drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a view of one side of the surgical stick of the present invention showing the clip members in their unlocked position free to be spread apart for the insertion of an absorbent material between the jaws thereof;

FIG. 2 is a view of the surgical stick shown in FIG. 1 with the absorbent material inserted between the jaws and the clip members in locked position;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 3--3 of FIG. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows; and

FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 are views of an alternative embodiment corresponding to the views of FIGS. 1, 2 and 3.

The surgical stick shown in FIGS. 1 through 3 of the drawings is made in one piece of a resilient material, preferably an inexpensive synthetic plastic. A pair of elongated clip members 10 and 11 extend from a hand gripping portion 12, and a pair of oppositely facing jaws 13 and 14 are formed at the ends of the clip members.

The gripping portion 12 is preferably shaped to include a pair of annular formations to provide a pair of spaced apart finger holes 15 and 16 at the end of the surgical stick remote from the jaws so that the surgeon can handle the instrument in the same way that he is accustomed to handle conventional surgical sticks.

The clip members 10 and 11 are free to be spread apart to receive the absorbent material 17 between the jaws. The faces of the jaws are preferably serrated to prevent the accidental removal of the absorbent material from between the jaws.

When the absorbent material has been inserted between the jaws, the clip members are forced together and locked in order to retain securely the absorbent material between the jaws. Toward this end, in the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 through 3 offset locking formations 18 and 19 are formed on the clip members. By reason of their offset relationship they can be forced into overlapping relation and secured together to lock the absorbent material between the jaws. The locking formations can be heat sealed together, or they can be secured by rivets or by an adhesive or by any other suitable means. Since the locking formations are of complementary shape and are adapted to engage each other in face-to-face relationship when they are properly mated, they insure that the jaws are brought together in proper face-to-face alignment.

The embodiment of the surgical stick shown in FIGS. 4 through 6 of the drawings is similar to the embodiment described above, except that the locking formations 20 and 21 thereof are adapted to be forced into interlocking relationship with each other. Toward this end, as shown in FIG. 6, the locking formation 20 has a barbed arrow-like edge 22 and the locking formation 21 has an edge containing a recess 23 therein for receiving the arrow-like formation. The recess has a restricted opening 24 which is capable of being forced apart by the wedge action of the arrow-like formation and it will close behind the barbed arrow-like formation when the latter is fully inserted within the recess.

The surgical stick of the present invention with the absorbent material locked between the jaws thereof can now be sterilized and packaged so that it is ready for use by the surgeon. Furthermore, because it can be made so inexpensively the surgical stick can be disposed of after use so that the hospital staff will not have to wash and sterilize the instrument.

The invention has been shown in preferred forms and by way of example only, and obviously many modifications and variations may be made therein within the spirit of the invention. The invention, therefore, is not to be limited to any specified form or embodiment, except insofar as such limitations are expressly set forth in the claims.

Claims

I claim:

1. A surgical stick formed in one piece of a resilient material for holding an absorbent surgical material comprising a pair of annular finger grips for holding the surgical stick between two fingers, a connection bridging the two finger grips and maintaining them in desired spaced-apart fixed relationship, a pair of closely-spaced elongated fingers integrally formed with and extending from said bridging connection, said fingers having open ends remote from the fixed ends which are integrally connected with the bridging connection, a pair of oppositely facing jaws formed at the ends of the elongated fingers remote from the ends which are fixed to the bridging connection, the resiliency of the material permitting the open ends of the elongated fingers to be spread apart relative to the fixed ends for the insertion of absorbent material between the jaws and fastening means intermediate the ends of the fingers in proximity to the jaws and remote from the fixed ends of the fingers for securing the fingers together to retain absorbent material securely between the jaws on the surgical stick.

2. A surgical stick as set forth in claim 1 including an absorbent material secured between the jaws in the region between the fastening means and the free ends of the fingers.

3. A surgical stick as set forth in claim 2 in which the jaws are serrated to prevent accidental removal of the absorbent material held therebetween.

4. A surgical stick as set forth in claim 2 in which the fastening means includes offset formations formed on the fingers which can be forced into overlapping relation and joined together to secure the absorbent material between the jaws.

5. A surgical stick as set forth in claim 2 in which the fastening means includes interlocking formations formed on the finger to lock the absorbent material between the jaws.

6. A surgical stick as set forth in claim 1 in which the fastening means include a barbed arrow-like formation on one clip member and a formation defining a recess on the other clip member, the recess including a restricted opening capable of being forced apart to accommodate insertion of the barbed arrow-like formation and closing therebehind.