A method of electrothermally fusing together pieces of tissue at an interface and simultaneously cutting the fused tissue along a linear path through the interface, including: compressing the tissue pieces together at the interface sufficiently for fusing the tissue pieces together and for cutting the fused tissue pieces in the linear path through the fused tissue at the interface delivering an impulse of electrical power of no greater than 4.0 seconds time duration which contains sufficient energy to fuse the tissue pieces together at the interface and to simultaneously cut the fused tissue converting the electrical power impulse into thermal energy applied at the interface and regulating the temperature of the thermal energy applied at the interface in a range of 200° C. to 320° C. while fusing and simultaneously cutting the tissue pieces at the interface by controlling characteristics of the electrical power impulse.
