What Are the Basic Types of Surgical Instruments?
Surgical instruments, most of which are made from stainless steel, are designed specially to help medical doctors and surgeons perform specific functions during surgery. While some can be used for a multitude of functions, others were designed for very specific uses. There are many surgical instruments for all the specialities in medicine including ophthalmology, microsurgery, otology, etc. However, most of the surgical instruments can be grouped into four basic types.
Cutting and Dissecting
Cutting and dissecting types are usually designed with sharp edges and tips to cut through skin, suture material, and tissue. In order to explore irregular growths or remove damaged or dangerous tissues, surgeons need to cut and dissect the skin. Cutting and dissecting instruments usually come with razor sharp edges. You want to be careful when handling these types of instruments as they are dangerously sharp.
Clamping and Occluding
Clamping and occluding instruments are used in a lot of surgical procedures to compress hollow organs or blood vessels, to prevent what is contained in them from leaking, which can lead to some nasty infections. To occlude means to shut or close, and so they can also be used to stop bleeding. Examples of these types of surgical instruments include Mosquito Forceps and Haemostats.
Retracting and Exposing
When surgeons need to hold back or retract tissue and organs to provide more access and visibility to the field of work, they make use of these types of retracting and exposing instruments. They help to spread the skin, other tissue, or ribs open. Retracting and exposing instruments can also be used to isolate the edges of a surgical incision. Some of these types of instruments can stay open on their own, while with others, have to be manually pried.
Grasping and Holding
As the name says, these types of instruments are used to grasp or hold blood vessels or tissues which may get in the way during surgery. These types of instruments need to work consistently and flawlessly. Additionally, the locking mechanism has to be lubricated before each use to ensure easy opening and closing, especially after cleaning and reprocessing. An example of grasping and holding instrument is the popularly known forceps. An instrument we’ve all seen in the emergency room style dramas on TV.
Regardless of the type of surgical instrument you need for your practice, it is important that you purchase one that is high-quality from a reputable dealer. Surgical Tools offers a wide variety of high-quality surgical instruments for all the specialities in medicine, which you can use and re-use for a long time.
