Lateral securement members for surgical staple cartridges

摘要

An end effector for use with a surgical instrument is disclosed. The end effector comprises an anvil, a cutting member, and a staple cartridge. The staple cartridge comprises a cartridge body, an elongate slot, and a deck comprising a first deck surface and a second deck surface, where one of the deck surfaces is stepped up from the other deck surface. The staple cartridge further comprises a plurality of first staple cavities arranged in a first row, a plurality of second staple cavities arranged in a second row, and a plurality of third staple cavities arranged in a third row. The staple cartridge further comprises a driven element, a lateral securement member releasably positioned over the deck, and a plurality of staples. The plurality of staples comprises a first staple, a second staple, and a third staple.

主权项

1. An end effector for use with a surgical instrument, the end effector comprising:
an anvil including a staple forming portion; a cutting member; and a staple cartridge, comprising:
a cartridge body including a proximal end and a distal end;an elongate slot extending between the proximal end and the distal end, wherein the cutting member is movable distally relative to the elongate slot between the proximal end and the distal end to cut tissue captured between the anvil and the staple cartridge;a deck, comprising:
a first deck surface; anda second deck surface, wherein one of the first deck surface and the second deck surface is stepped up from the other one of the first deck surface and the second deck surface;a plurality of first staple cavities arranged in a first row on a lateral side of the elongate slot, wherein the first row extends along the first deck surface;a plurality of second staple cavities arranged in a second row on the lateral side of the elongate slot, wherein the second row is closer to the elongate slot than the first row, and wherein the second row extends along the second deck surface;a plurality of third staple cavities arranged in a third row on the lateral side of the elongate slot, wherein the third row is closer to the elongate slot than the second row;a driven element;a lateral securement member releasably positioned over the deck, wherein the cutting member is movable toward the distal end of the cartridge body, and wherein the lateral securement member is released during the distal movement of the cutting member; anda plurality of staples deployable concurrently into the tissue captured between the anvil and the staple cartridge, the plurality of staples comprising:
a first staple removably stored in the first row of staple cavities, the first staple comprising:
a first proximal leg; anda first distal leg, wherein the first distal leg is located distal to the first proximal leg;a second staple removably stored in the second row of staple cavities, the second staple comprising:
a second proximal leg; anda second distal leg, wherein the second distal leg is located distal to the second proximal leg; anda third staple removably stored in the third row of staple cavities, the third staple comprising:
a third proximal leg; anda third distal leg, wherein the third distal leg is located distal to the third proximal leg, wherein the third proximal leg is located distal to the second proximal leg, wherein the second proximal leg is located distal to the first proximal leg, wherein the third distal leg is located distal to the second distal leg, wherein the second distal leg is located distal to the first distal leg, wherein the third proximal leg is located distal to the first distal leg, and wherein the plurality of staples are engaged with the driven element.