Disclosed is a detachable anchor for a guiding tool of a minimally invasive surgery. The detachable anchor includes a hollow elongate member arranged to coaxially fit over a shaft of the guiding tool. The detachable anchor also includes an expandable sleeve having a first end and a second end. The expandable sleeve is at least partially double wall structure consisting of an inner wall and an outer wall. The walls are attached to each other at least at the second end of the sleeve. Further, the sleeve is attached at its first end to the hollow clongate member and has an inlet for inflating medium.

An access device for accessing an intervertebral disc having an outer shield comprising an access shield with a larger diameter (16-30 mm) that reaches from the skin down to the facet line, with an inner shield having a second smaller diameter (5-12 mm) extending past the access shield and reaches down to the disc level. This combines the benefits of the direct visual microsurgical/mini open approaches and the percutaneous, ultra-MIS techniques.

A contact portion, provided in an exposed surface of the treating section, treats a treated object by a transmitted ultrasonic vibration while intruding into the treated object toward an intruding direction from a state being in contact with the treated object. An index portion is disposed on an anti-intruding direction side with respect to the contact portion in the exposed surface. The index portion becomes an index indicating an intruding amount of the contact portion into the treated object toward the intruding direction. The index portion includes index surfaces arranged in the intruding direction, and each of the index surfaces has an angle relative to the intruding direction which is different from the angle of the adjacent index surface.

A laparoscopic bag, wherein the laparoscopic bag comprises one opening which is in a top portion, and a body portion, wherein the laparoscopic bag comprises an inner layer which is waterproof, a middle layer which is resistant to morcellation, and an outer layer which is waterproof.

A surgical apparatus for positioning within a tissue tract accessing an underlying body cavity includes a seal anchor member including leading portion, a trailing portion, and an intermediate portion disposed between the leading and trailing portions. The leading portion of the seal anchor member is configured and adapted to ease insertion of the seal anchor member into the tissue tract. Subsequent to insertion of the seal anchor member, the leading portion of the seal anchor member is also configured and adapted to facilitate securing and/or anchoring of the seal anchor member within the tissue tract.

To reliably fix a medical instrument to a body wall by easy operation without causing increased costs and complicated configuration. For inserting a trocar as a medical instrument which can be pierced into a body cavity, a front end of the trocar is inserted into a body wall along a first direction having a specified angle with respect to an exterior surface of the body wall, and then the front end of the trocar is inserted into the body wall along a second direction whose angle with the exterior surface of the body wall is acuter than that of the first direction. As a result, the trocar is reliably fixed with large resistance received from the body wall.

An access device for accessing an intervertebral disc having an outer shield comprising an access shield with a larger diameter (16-30 mm) that reaches from the skin down to the facet line, with an inner shield having a second smaller diameter (5-12 mm) extending past the access shield and reaches down to the disc level. This combines the benefits of the direct visual microsurgical/mini open approaches and the percutaneous, ultra-MIS techniques.

A surgical apparatus for positioning within a tissue tract accessing an underlying body cavity includes a seal anchor member including leading portion, a trailing portion, and an intermediate portion disposed between the leading and trailing portions. The leading portion of the seal anchor member is configured and adapted to ease insertion of the seal anchor member into the tissue tract. Subsequent to insertion of the seal anchor member, the leading portion of the seal anchor member is also configured and adapted to facilitate securing and/or anchoring of the seal anchor member within the tissue tract.

A surgical access assembly is disclosed, including a resiliently compressible access port defining a longitudinal axis and having proximal and distal ends. At least one lumen extends from the proximal end to the distal end of the access port and is substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis. The surgical access assembly includes a resiliently compressible adapter having proximal and distal ends, an opening at the proximal end, and a passage for receipt of the access port. The adapter has a diameter at its distal end different from the diameter of the distal end of the access port. The adapter has at least one opening in its distal end to allow an object to exit the at least one lumen. The surgical access assembly may also include a sleeve positionable through an opening in tissue.

Apparatus and methods are described, including apparatus for puncturing a fossa ovalis of a heart. The apparatus comprises a catheter shaped to define a catheter lumen. A puncturing element is slidably disposed within the catheter lumen and configured to (a) be deployed from a distal portion of the catheter, and (b) puncture the fossa ovalis. A balloon is configured to be deployed from the distal portion of the catheter, be radially expanded, and upon being deployed and expanded, facilitate positioning of the puncturing element, by contacting at least a portion of the fossa ovalis. Other applications are also described.