Surgical instrument for cutting hard tissue and method of use

Claim 2

A surgical instrument for cutting and removing medium to hard body tissue such as cartilage and bone from a joint region or similar restricted interior space within a body, said instrument comprising: a) cutting means having a first end and a second end, said cutting means provided at the first end with a cutter comprising a blade terminally positioned and a rasping pad rearward of the blade, said cutting means further provided with an axial conduit terminating in a plurality of openings on or proximate to the cutter; b) drive means connected to the second end of said cutting means, said drive means operative to move the cutter in a linearly reciprocating fashion to cut away pieces of tissue; and c) vacuum means operative to produce a suction force at the openings of the axial conduit of said cutting means for removing cut away tissue pieces from the interior space.

Claim 3

A surgical instrument for cutting and removing medium to hard body tissue such as cartilage and bone from a joint region or similar restricted interior space within a body, said instrument comprising: a) stationary carrier means sized for insertion into a joint or similar restricted interior space within the body, said stationary carrier means having a first end and a second end, provided lengthwise with an axial channel, and terminating at the first end in an aperture; b) cutting means axially disposed within said carrier means, said cutting means having a first end and a second end and provided at the first end with a cutter comprising a terminally positioned blade and a rasping pad positioned rearward of the blade, said cutting means further provided with an axial conduit terminating in a plurality of openings on or proximate to the cutter; c) drive means connected to the second end of said cutting means, said drive means operative to move the cutter and rasping pad in a linearly reciprocating fashion to cut away pieces of tissue; and d) vacuum means operative to produce a suction force at the openings of the axial conduit of said cutting means for removing cut away tissue pieces from the interior space.

Claim 4

A surgical instrument for cutting and removing medium to hard body tissue such as cartilage and bone from a joint region or similar restricted interior space within a body, said instrument comprising: a) stationary carrier means sized for insertion into a joint or similar restricted interior space within the body, said stationary carrier means having a first end and a second end, provided lengthwise with an axial channel, and terminating at the first end in an aperture; b) cutting means axially disposed within said carrier means, said cutting means having a first end and a second end and provided at the first end with a cutter comprising a terminally positioned blade and a rasping pad positioned rearward of the blade, said cutting means further provided with an axial conduit terminating in a plurality of openings on or proximate to the cutter; c) drive means connected to the second end of said cutting means, said drive means operative to move the cutter and rasping pad in a linearly reciprocating fashion to cut away pieces of tissue; and d) vacuum means operative to produce a suction force at the openings of the axial conduit of said cutting means for removing cut away tissue pieces from the interior space.

Claim 5

A surgical instrument for cutting and removing medium to hard body tissue such as cartilage and bone from a joint region or similar restricted interior space within a body, said instrument comprising: a) stationary carrier means sized for insertion into a joint or similar restricted interior space within the body, said stationary carrier means having a first end and a second end, provided lengthwise with an axial channel, and terminating at the first end in an aperture; b) cutting means axially disposed within said carrier means, said cutting means having a first end and a second end and provided at the first end with a cutter comprising a terminally positioned blade and a substantially planar rasping pad positioned rearward of the blade, said cutting means further provided with an axial conduit terminating in a plurality of openings on or proximate to the cutter; c) drive means connected to the second end of said cutting means, said drive means operative to move the cutter and rasping pad in a linearly reciprocating fashion to cut away pieces of tissue; and d) vacuum means operative to produce a suction force at the openings of the axial conduit of said cutting means for removing cut away tissue pieces from the interior space, wherein the channel of said stationary cutting means forms a track which guides the linearly reciprocating movement of the cutting means.

Claim 6

A surgical instrument for cutting and removing medium to hard body tissue such as cartilage and bone from a joint region or similar restricted interior space within a body, said instrument comprising: a) stationary carrier means sized for insertion into a joint or similar restricted interior space within the body, said stationary carrier means having a first end and a second end, provided lengthwise with an axial channel, and terminating at the first end in an aperture; b) cutting means axially disposed within said carrier means, said cutting means having a first end and a second end and provided at the first end with a cutter comprising a terminally positioned blade and a substantially planar rasping pad positioned rearward of the blade, said cutting means further provided with an axial conduit terminating in a plurality of openings on or proximate to the cutter; c) drive means connected to the second end of said cutting means, said drive means operative to move the cutter and rasping pad in a linearly reciprocating fashion to cut away pieces of tissue; and d) vacuum means operative to produce a suction force at the openings of the axial conduit of said cutting means for removing cut away tissue pieces from the interior space, wherein the channel of said stationary cutting means forms a track which guides the linearly reciprocating movement of the cutting means.

Claim 7

A surgical instrument for cutting and removing medium to hard body tissue such as cartilage and bone from a joint region or similar restricted interior space within a body, said instrument comprising: a) cutting means having a first end and a second end, said cutting means provided at the first end with a cutter comprising a terminally positioned blade and a rasping pad positioned rearward of the blade, said cutting means further provided with an axial conduit terminating in a plurality of openings on or proximate to the cutter; b) drive means connected to the second end of said cutting means, said drive means operative to move the rasping pad and cutter in a linearly reciprocating fashion to cut away pieces of tissue; c) freezing means for delivering a liquified inert gas to the operation site to harden soft tissue for cutting; and d) vacuum means operative to produce a suction force at the openings of the axial conduit of said cutting means for removing cut away tissue pieces from the interior space.

Claim 8

A surgical instrument for cutting and removing medium to hard body tissue such as cartilage and bone from a joint region or similar restricted interior space within a body, said instrument comprising: a) cutting means having a first end and a second end, said cutting means provided at the first end with a cutter comprising a terminally positioned blade and a rasping pad positioned rearward of the blade, said cutting means further provided with an axial conduit terminating in a plurality of openings on or proximate to the cutter; b) drive means connected to the second end of said cutting means, said drive means operative to move the rasping pad and cutter in a linearly reciprocating fashion to cut away pieces of tissue; c) freezing means for delivering a liquified inert gas to the operation site to harden soft tissue for cutting; and d) vacuum means operative to produce a suction force at the openings of the axial conduit of said cutting means for removing cut away tissue pieces from the interior space.