Sealing plate having depressions with ceramic insulation

摘要

An end effector assembly includes a pair of opposing jaw members. One or more of the jaw members includes a support base, an electrical jaw lead, a sealing plate, and a ceramic layer. The sealing plate is coupled to the electrical jaw lead and mounted to the support base. The sealing plate includes a tissue engaging surface, an opposing surface, and a series of depressions formed within the opposing surface and projecting from the tissue engaging surface. The ceramic layer is deposited atop each of the series of depressions. The combination of the depressions that project from the tissue engaging surface and their ceramic layers form a corresponding series of nonconductive stop members for controlling the separation distance between opposing jaw members when closed about tissue.