Suture passer with radiused upper jaw

Abstract

Described herein are suture passers that may be used for repair of the meniscus of the knee. These suture passers typically include an elongate body having a pair of arms. One or more of the arms may be radiused at the distal end region relative to the long axis of the device, to better fit between a target tissue and a body non-target tissue (e.g., the curvature of the femoral condyle). The arms may form a distal-facing opening that is configured to fit the target tissue. One arm may be movable in the axial direction (e.g., the direction of the long axis of the device), while the other arm may be bendable. A tissue penetrator may be housed within one of the aims to extend across the distal opening between the arms. Thus, a suture may be passed from a first side of the tissue to a second side.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A suture passer device for passing a suture through a meniscus, the device comprising:
 an elongate body having a length and extending distally and proximally along a long axis;   a first arm extending from the distal end of the elongate body,   a second arm extending distally from the elongate body, wherein an upper surface of the second arm is radiused and curves away from the long axis; further wherein the first arm and the second arm form a distal-facing opening between the second arm and the first arm; and   a tissue penetrator configured to extend across the distal-facing opening between the first and second aims to pass a suture there between, wherein the tissue penetrator is housed within either the first arm or the second arm.