Apparatus for applying surgical clips

摘要

Surgical clip applying apparatus in which clips are delivered to a pair of jaws one at a time for closure around body tissue. The squeezing together of a pair of ring handles causes the jaws to move distally relative to the apparatus. The jaws contact a pair of inclined surfaces on the shaft of the apparatus and are thereby forced together, causing the distal-most clip in a linear array to be closed around body tissue. Release of the handles returns the jaws to the original positions so that another clip closing cycle can be initiated. An escapement mechanism interacts with the jaws to ensure that only one clip at a time from the linear array is delivered to the jaws. A clutch assembly ensures that each step in the clip closing and return cycle is completed in the proper sequence.