Knot Tying Device and Method
Patent Number: US 6,171,317 B1
A knot tying device, invented by Jasper Jackson and colleagues, is shown in Figure 18. We are interested in this device because it provides a possible method of configuring the suture ends into a knot. The devise is comprised a pair of snare chords (30 and 32) that are carried in a knotting guide (12) with a handle (14) of appropriate length. The knotting guide includes a base (16) with a removable cover. The snare chords can be made of any appropriate sized filament and each has a capture end (34 and 38) and a pull end (36 and 40). The chords are positioned in a loose knot pattern by guide pins (20) within the knotting guide. The pins can be placed to make the type of knot desired and the removable cover has holes that match with the pins. The knot pictured in Figure 18 is a sliding surgeon’s knot. Both chords are configured in partial knot patterns that are complementary of each other so that together the chords form a full knot. This knot, though, is loose so that each of the chords can be pulled through the knotting guide.
The suture ends (not pictured) are passed through the capture loops of the snare chords. The snare cords are then pulled by their pull ends through the knotting guide, either sequentially or simultaneously, thereby pulling the suture ends through the knotting guide. Through this method, the suture ends are configured in the loose knot pattern the snare chords were originally positioned in. The suture ends can be pulled from the knot tying device as far as necessary to pull the suture chordae as tight as desired. The snare chords are then detached and the suture knot is removed from the knotting guide and tightened. The slack in the loose knot needs to be accounted for when determining where to position the knot in order to achieve the desired tension in the chordae.
A knot tying device, invented by Jasper Jackson and colleagues, is shown in Figure 18. We are interested in this device because it provides a possible method of configuring the suture ends into a knot. The devise is comprised a pair of snare chords (30 and 32) that are carried in a knotting guide (12) with a handle (14) of appropriate length. The knotting guide includes a base (16) with a removable cover. The snare chords can be made of any appropriate sized filament and each has a capture end (34 and 38) and a pull end (36 and 40). The chords are positioned in a loose knot pattern by guide pins (20) within the knotting guide. The pins can be placed to make the type of knot desired and the removable cover has holes that match with the pins. The knot pictured in Figure 18 is a sliding surgeon’s knot. Both chords are configured in partial knot patterns that are complementary of each other so that together the chords form a full knot. This knot, though, is loose so that each of the chords can be pulled through the knotting guide.
The suture ends (not pictured) are passed through the capture loops of the snare chords. The snare cords are then pulled by their pull ends through the knotting guide, either sequentially or simultaneously, thereby pulling the suture ends through the knotting guide. Through this method, the suture ends are configured in the loose knot pattern the snare chords were originally positioned in. The suture ends can be pulled from the knot tying device as far as necessary to pull the suture chordae as tight as desired. The snare chords are then detached and the suture knot is removed from the knotting guide and tightened. The slack in the loose knot needs to be accounted for when determining where to position the knot in order to achieve the desired tension in the chordae.