Surgical device for pushing together a thread loop

1. A surgical device for tightening a slip knot which is formed by a loop at the distal free end of a thread, said loop being displaceable along the thread, comprising:

a displacing element which can be displaced on the thread toward the loop,

a gripping element for use in applying tension to said thread,

a holding element in the form of a flexible latching arrangement for releasably coupling the gripping element to a proximal portion of the thread remote from the loop,

said gripping element being adapted to decouple from the holding element when a specific displacing force is exceeded,

wherein each of the displacing, gripping and holding elements are separate elements slidable relative to each other.

2. The device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the displacing element is a sleeve adapted to closely surround the thread, at least at the distal end of the thread.

3. The device as claimed in claim 2 , wherein:

the holding element is adapted to secured secure the proximal portion of the thread against displacement with respect to the holding element in the distal direction, and

a connection between the holding element and the gripping element is adapted to be released to decouple the gripping element from said proximal portion of the thread when said specific displacing force is exceeded.

4. The device as claimed in claim 3 , wherein the holding element is a sleeve adapted to surround the proximal portion of the thread.

5. The device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:

the proximal portion of the thread is disposed in said holding element in such a way that it is secured against displacement with respect to the holding element in the distal direction, and

a connection between the holding element and the gripping element is released to decouple the gripping element from said proximal portion of the thread when said specific displacing force is exceeded.

6. The device as claimed in claim 5 , wherein the holding element is a sleeve surrounding the proximal portion of the thread.

7. The device as claimed in claim 5 , wherein the gripping element is a gripping sleeve surrounding the holding element.

8. The device as claimed in claim 7 , wherein the gripping sleeve is mounted displaceably in the direction of the thread on the holding element, and the holding element is formed as a sleeve.

9. The device as claimed in claim 5 , wherein the displacing movement of the gripping element in relation to the holding element is limited after release of the connection by a stop.

10. The device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:

the gripping element comprises a gripping sleeve surrounding the holding element; and

said flexible latching arrangement couples the gripping element and the holding element and is formed by projections and indentations which are disposed on the inner side of the gripping sleeve and the outer side of the holding element, said projections and indentations adapted to engage flexibly in one another, and to disengage when a specific displacing force is exceeded to permit a relative displacement of the gripping sleeve and the holding element.

11. The device as claimed in claim 10 , wherein the projections and indentations have slide-on surfaces which lie against one another.

12. The device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the loop is led through two implant parts, which can be braced against each other by means of the loop.

13. The device as claimed in claim 12 , wherein the implant parts have mutually facing plate-shaped butting surfaces, which can be placed from opposite sides against the outer surfaces of two bone parts disposed next to each other.

14. A surgical device for tightening a slip knot which is formed by a loop at the distal end of a thread, said loop being displaceable along the thread, comprising:

a displacing element,

a gripping element for use in moving said displacing element on the thread toward the loop in order to tighten the knot,

said gripping element being coupled to said displacing element via a flexible latching arrangement and adapted to decouple from the displacing element when a specific displacing force is exceeded to stop the displacing element from continuing to move toward the loop, and

a holding element for holding a proximal end of said thread while said displacing element is moved toward the loop at said distal end of the thread,

each of the displacing, gripping and holding elements being separate elements slidable relative to each other.

15. The device as claimed in claim 14 , wherein the gripping element is a gripping sleeve surrounding the displacing element.

16. The device as claimed in claim 15 , wherein the gripping sleeve is mounted displaceably in the direction of the thread on the displacing element, and the displacing element is formed as a sleeve.

17. The device as claimed in claim 16 , wherein the connection of the gripping sleeve and the displacing element is formed by a pair of projections and indentations which are disposed on the inner side of the gripping sleeve and the outer side of the displacing element, engage flexibly in one another, disengage when a specific displacing force is exceeded and permit a relative displacement of the gripping sleeve and the displacing element.

18. The device as claimed in claim 17 , wherein the projections and indentations have slide-on surfaces which lie against one another.

19. The device as claimed in claim 15 , wherein the displacing movement of the gripping element in relation to the displacing element is limited after release of the connection by a stop.

20. The device as claimed in claim 14 , wherein the displacing element is a sleeve adapted to closely surround the thread, at least at the distal end of the thread.