APPARATUS FOR REGULATING TISSUE WELDER JAW

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a surgical apparatus and methods for severing and welding tissue, in particular blood vessels, including an elongated shaft having a pair of relatively movable jaws at a distal end thereof.SOLUTION: A first heating element disposed on one of the two jaws heats up to a first temperature and forms a welded region within the tissue, while a second heating element on the other jaw heats up to a second temperature and severs the tissue within the welded region. A control handle includes controls for opening and closing the jaws, and can include an actuator for sending current through the first and second heating elements. A force-limiting mechanism provided either within the control handle, in the elongated shaft, or at the jaws limits the pressure applied to the tissue by the jaws to ensure that the tissue is severed within a short amount of time.