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Surgical Instruments Kinds And Their Applications

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  • Aug ,28 2021
  • BY 8health

In order to optimize their performance, the surgeons use different types of surgical instruments when performing a surgery. To date, a variety of surgical instruments have been developed by the surgical instruments manufacturers to assist the surgeons. They are basically categorized on the basis of their functions. They are used for occluding, cutting, holding, dissecting, grasping, retracting, suturing, etc.

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They are classified based on their functionalities into the following categories.

Cutting / dissecting surgical instruments

Many instruments are used for cutting soft tissue, bones, skin. Some of them are reusable like knives while others are disposable such as blades, scalpels. Some instruments are created in order to dissect tough tissues like the Mayo scissors more commonly used by gynecologists and obstetricians for cutting ligaments while some are used for dissecting delicate tissues Metzenbaum scissors are used by plastic surgeons.

Instruments used for retraction

Retracing instruments help surgeons to have a clearer vision of the surgical field. Using these instruments, surgeons retract tissues away without traumatizing them. For this purpose, a common type of instrument used in laparotomy is Balfour abdominal retractor. Some of the retractors like the GELPI perineal retractors are self-retaining thus easing operative field visualization. Used for sternotomy operations, Finochietto is a kind of bone retracted.

Occluding and clamping surgical instruments

These kinds of instruments like hemostats, hemostatic forceps, crushing clamps are primarily used for clamping blood vessels or other tissues to get them away from the field during surgical procedures.

Instruments to improve visualization

There are instruments created to view deep structures which cannot be seen externally. Endoscopes, Anoscopes, Speculums are some instruments falling into this category.

Aspiration instruments

Dental and surgical fields are filled with copious amounts of fluids and blood that hide the underlying structures. So in order to remove these fluids from their field certain instruments are used like Poole abdominal tips used in laparotomy.

Instruments used for grasping and handling

In order to have a closer view of their surgical field, surgeons use certain instruments to hold or grasp tissues. The most common ones used for this purpose are forceps, bone holders, tenaculum. For an instance, the rat-toothed forceps are a common type of instrument used by surgeons to grasp skin.

Stapling and suturing surgical instruments

Stapling and suturing instruments are created to bring the edges of the soft tissue or skin together. In a typical suturing kit, you will find a needle, needle holder, a fine suturing scissor, and toothed forceps. Clip appliers and staplers are other instruments that one can include in this category.

Instruments used for dilating and probing

For expanding the size of an orifice like the urethra or the cervical os, dilating instruments are often used. Dilators can range from small to large having different calibers. On the other hand, probes are inserted into natural openings like the vagina, urethra, common bile ducts to explore these cavities.

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