A device which can act as a manually operable valve to permit or to prevent flow of bodily fluids, particularly urine, within their normal channels. The device is surgically implanted completely inside the body to prevent infection. Pressure on a button under the skin permits flow, and release of the pressure terminates flow. This effect is caused by arms positioned on opposite sides of the flow channel which produce a clamping action.

Apparatus having parallel-closing jaws for clamping and immobilizing ends of blood vessels to be joined together by suturing without damaging the vessel walls. A spring biasing the jaws together is adjustable to exert no more than 30 gm/cm.sup.2 in squeezing force to vessel walls in each clamp. A stay suture retainer affixed to one or more of the jaws of the apparatus receives ends of two stay sutures passed through the ends of the blood vessels to draw them together, to immobilize the vessel ends with respect to the apparatus during close, finish suturing thereof. Mayfield-type and threaded-shaft clamp pairs are disclosed, each connected to and selectively slidable along a rigid bar for adjustable spacing upon the ends of the vessels to be joined. The clamps are durable and comprise a single piece to facilitate use.

This disclosure relates to a clip for surgical purposes comprising a coil spring having at least one loop and a pair of crossing legs. The ends of the legs which extend beyond the crossing point are formed as clamping jaws. Because the portions of the legs adjoining the loop extend generally parallel to one another and the ends of the legs run side-by-side, and because a ring is provided at the crossing point for holding the legs together, the clip can be constructed with such small dimensions that it is particularly advantageously useful for neurosurgical purposes.

A modular surgical instrument includes a handle, an end effector, and an elongate tubular sleeve extending between and opposing the end effector and the handle, a reciprocating actuator rod disposed within the sleeve, the end effector being operably connected to a distal end of the actuator rod and having opposed members, at least one of which is movable with respect to another upon sliding movement of the actuator rod within the sleeve, and a handle including a pair of opposing actuating members, the handle having a first end connected to a proximal end of the tubular sleeve, and a second end releasably snap connected to a proximal end of the actuator rod. Compression of the actuating members toward each other causes the actuator rod to move at least one of the opposing members of the end effector with respect to the other. The disclosed arrangement allows an end effector to be easily removed from the handle and replaced with a different end effector, thus reducing costs associated with replacing worn end effectors and eliminating the need for providing each end effector with its own handle.

A surgical clip comprises a body with two initially disconnected arms. Each arm terminates in an integral outwardly projecting clamping jaw. One of the arms includes a passageway through which the other arm is inserted to align the arms and to position the jaws in aligned mutual juxtaposition. A mating section is formed on one of the arms and is adapted to interconnect with a reciprocal mating section on the other arm to complete assembly of the clip.