Patent EP0352984A1 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
EP0352984A1
Expired / Lapsed
EP
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Polymeric sleeve for surgical instruments
Assignee: Allergan Inc
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Filing: 1989-07-21
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2009-07-21
Abstract
Abstract A sleeve (10) useful on a surgical instrument, in particular an instrument (20) for treating the eye such as a vitrectomy cutter, is disclosed. Such sleeve includes a hollow elongate sleeve portion with at least one fluid outlet at or near its distal end portion (12), and a hub (14) secured to the sleeve portion and adapted to receive at least a portion of the surgical instrument. The present sleeve is made of one or more organic polymeric materials and provides substantial benefits, e.g., providing effective fluid seals and being non-irritating in use, and being disposable after use.
Inventors
- 👤 Edward R. Zaleski
- 👤 Richard F. Christ
- 👤 Jacob Frank Robert Louw
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-04 20:12
CPC Classifications
A; A61; A61F; A61F9/00; A61F9/007; A61F9/00736; A61M; A61M1/00; A61M1/84; A61M1/85; A61B; A61B17/00; A61B17/32; A61B17/320068; A61B2017/320084
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 11
Claim 1
Independent Claim
129 words
A sleeve useful on a surgical instrument comprising: an elongate sleeve portion having a hollow interior space through which fluid can pass, and at least one fluid outlet at or near the distal end portion of said elongate sleeve portion to allow fluid to leave said interior space; and a hub secured to or integral with said elongate sleeve portion and adapted to receive at least a portion of said surgical instrument, said hub being structured and adapted to contact said surgical instrument so as to substantially prevent fluid in said hub from passing out of said hub through the opening in said hub through which said surgical instrument enters said hub, said elongate sleeve portion and said hub each being made of at least one organic polymeric material.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
129 words
A sleeve useful on a surgical instrument comprising: an elongate sleeve portion having a hollow interior space through which fluid can pass, and at least one fluid outlet at or near the distal end portion of said elongate sleeve portion to allow fluid to leave said interior space; and a hub secured to or integral with said elongate sleeve portion and adapted to receive at least a portion of said surgical instrument, said hub being structured and adapted to contact said surgical instrument so as to substantially prevent fluid in said hub from passing out of said hub through the opening in said hub through which said surgical instrument enters said hub, said elongate sleeve portion and said hub each being made of at least one organic polymeric material.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
25 words
The sleeve of claim 1 wherein said elongate sleeve portion and said hub each have a hardness of about 90 Shore Hardness D or less.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
27 words
The sleeve of claim 1 or 2 wherein said elongate sleeve portion is harder than said hub and less than 10 times as hard as said hub.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
25 words
The sleeve of claim 3 wherein said elongate sleeve is less than 5 times, based on relative Shore D values, as hard as said hub.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
57 words
The sleeve of any preceding claim wherein said elongate sleeve portion further includes an outlet through which the distal end portion of said surgical instrument extends out of said interior space, said outlet being structured to substantially prevent fluid from said interior space from passing out of said interior space between said outlet and said surgical instrument.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
23 words
The sleeve of any preceding claim wherein said elongate sleeve portion and said hub are made of substantially the same organic polymeric material.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
17 words
The sleeve of any preceding claim wherein said elongate sleeve portion is flexible under normal use conditions.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
23 words
The sleeve of any preceding claim wherein said organic polymeric material(s) is or are selected from elastomers, thermoplastics, plasticized thermoplastics and mixtures thereof.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
20 words
The sleeve of claim 8 wherein said organic polymeric material(s) is or are selected from thermoplastic polyurethanes and mixtures thereof.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
17 words
The sleeve of claim 9 wherein said thermoplastic polyurethanes are derived from one or more non-aromatic diisocyanates.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
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