US Patent 8082925 Transvaginal tube as an aid to laparoscopic surgery

A method of performing a laparoscopic hysterectomy treatment or other laparoscopic treatment on a patient, utilizes a transvaginal surgical device that includes a tube having a diameter greater than the patient's cervix, and an annular edge which lies substantially in a plane non-normal to its tubular axis, and a sealing structure capable of sealing the tube during surgery to maintain the pneumoperitoneum. The method includes introducing the device into the patient's vagina so that the annular edge defines a cervico-vaginal junction, and separating the cervix from the vagina at the defined cervico-vaginal junction.