Patent attributes
A surgical instrument is adapted for applying a plurality of surgical fasteners to body tissue. The surgical instrument includes an anvil and a cartridge housing containing a plurality of surgical fasteners. The cartridge housing and anvil are relatively movable between a first spaced apart position and a second closed position. A firing mechanism is associated with the cartridge housing for ejecting the surgical fasteners from the cartridge housing to be driven against the anvil. A lockout mechanism interacts with the cartridge housing for activation and deactivation; the lockout mechanism preventing movement of the cartridge housing to its second closed position but permitting relative reapproximation movement of the cartridge housing and anvil, whereby reapproximation provides an indicator that the instrument is not malfunctioning.
