Tonsil forceps

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/069,942, filed Mar. 18, 2008.

This invention relates generally to the field of medical forceps, and more particularly to such forceps that are lockable in multiple indexed closure positions and that possess distal end finger-like projections.

Forceps are handheld instruments in the form of tongs or pincers used to grasp, compress or pull body parts, tissue, organs, teeth, etc. A typical forceps comprises a pair of pivotally joined elongated arm members, the proximal ends of the arms being provided with finger holes for manipulating the instrument and the distal ends being provided with grasping structures suited for particular purposes, such as finger-like extensions, sharp teeth, blades, curved members, concave members, etc. Many forceps are provided with releasable locking means, such as for example a pair of opposing toothed bar members, one mounted on each arm and extending toward each other, that together act in a ratcheting manner, whereby the forceps will remain in a set clamping or spread position without the need for the surgeon physically maintaining a handhold, and whereby the forceps can be released from the locked position by separating the toothed bar members in the directions of the pivot axis.

In the removal of tonsils, it is necessary to grasp and pull the tonsil in order to separate and resect the tonsil from the surrounding mucosa, muscle and fascia. By pulling on the tonsil the anatomy surrounding the tonsil and the edges of the tonsil itself are better exposed, and the surgeon is able to more carefully cut into the tissue. Often the tonsils are partially embedded within the muscles and fascia, such that grasping the tonsil is difficult. The current style forceps used for this task tend to bite, stab or cut the tonsil during this grasping operation, resulting in undesirable fragmentation of the tonsil during the resection.

It is an object of this invention to provide tonsil forceps that alleviate the problems encountered with standard forceps such that the tonsil may be grasped and pulled without biting into, cutting, stabbing or otherwise piercing the surface or fragmenting the tonsil during resection. It is an object to provide such tonsil forceps wherein the distal grasping members comprise a pair of curved segments each having finger-like tine members that are interdigitating yet non-contacting and non-shearing when the forceps are closed about the tonsil. It is a further object to provide such tonsil forceps wherein inwardly facing projection members are provided on the interiors of the elongated arm members in order to better grasp the tonsil. It is a further object to provide such tonsil forceps wherein releasable locking means are provided such that the forceps may be locked into at least one position in which the tips of the finger-like tines are not interdigitated.

The invention is a tonsil forceps comprising first and second intersecting and pivoting arm members, the arm members being joined by pivoting connection means at an intermediate point such that the distal end of the forceps can be closed for grasping and opened for release in a scissoring manner by relative movement of the proximal ends toward and away from each other, respectively. Releasable locking means for securing the forceps in multiple locked positions are provided, such as for example a ratchet-type mechanism. Finger loops are provided on the proximal ends of the arm members. Each of the distal ends of the arm members comprises grasping means for securing a tonsil, each grasping means comprising a palm-like curved portion and a set of inwardly curved, blunt tipped, finger-like tine members extending generally inwardly from the palm-like curved portions, wherein the sets of finger-like tine members of one distal end pass between but do not contact the finger-like tine members of the other distal end when the forceps are closed. In at least one of the locked positions, the tips on one set of the finger-like tines do not cross the tips of the other set of finger-like tines. The grasping means further comprise inwardly facing projection members, such as raised ridges, blunted teeth, posts, nubs or the like, are located on the interior sides of the palm-like curved portions. The projection members are non-contacting with each other even in the maximum closed forceps position.