Instrumentation Flashcards
What are #10 scalpel blades used for?
Small animal general purpose
What are #15 scalpel blades used for?
Cat, general purpose
What are #20 scalpel blades used for?
Large animal, general purpose
What are #12 scalpel blades used for?
Suture removal
What scalpel blades do size 3 scalpel handles take?
10, 11, 12, 15
What scalpel blades do size 4 scalpel handles take?
20, 21, 22, 23
What are size 4 scalpel handles usually used for?
- Large animal surgery
- Accept larger blades
What are the advantages and disadvantages of the penholder scalpel grip?
Advantages: very stable, good contact angle
Disadvantages: allows only short slide cuts
What are the advantages and disadvantages of the fingertip scalpel grip?
Advantages: allows long slide cuts
Disadvantages: less stable, flatter contact angle
Outline slide cutting
- Use curved part of blade to incise the skin
- Assisting hand tenses tissue and reduces downward force
Outline stab cutting
- Use for visceral puncture
- Difficult to control depth
Outline the push cut
- Large animal surgery only
- Deep incision
What are the 3 types of scissors?
- Suture
- Bandage
- Tissue
Outline suture scissors
- Do not use tissue scissor for cutting suture material
- Carless and Littauer
What are Carless scissors used for?
Heavy duty suture scissors
What are Littauer scissors used for?
Removal of tight/small or awkward sutures
Name the 2 types of tissue scissors
Mayo and Metzenbaums
Describe Mayo scissors
- Wider, robust blades
- Deals with tough tissue
Describe Metzenbaum scissors
- Fine blades
- Used for delicate dissection
What are the cutting forces exerted by scissors?
- Closing
- Shearing
- Torque (twisting)
Describe dressing scissors
- Used to cut dressing material and general work
- Also used for cutting suture material during surgery
What instruments can be used for haemostasis in surgery?
- Artery forceps
- Swabs
- Suction
- Electrical
Name the 4 most common artery forceps
- Mosquito
- Spencer-Wells
- Rochester-Pean
- Cholescystectomy or Roberts
Compare the serration on artery forceps and bowel clamps
- Serrated edge runs transverse on artery forceps
- Runs lengthways on bowel clamps
What are Bowel clamps used for?
- Striations are less traumatic
- Though tot be more secure in sealing the bowel during surgery
What are curved forceps used for?
Pick up small bleeders and for grasping tissue bunches
How are artery forceps held?
Standard tripod grip
Describe surgical swabs
- Cotton strand/fibre
- More cotton = more effective
- Raytex markers important for cavity surgery as are radiopaque so can be found if left in
- Laparotomy sponges are very large
- Dental rolls and Q tips can also be used
Describe suction for haemostasis
- Can be attached to a wall mounted system or mobile generator
- 4 main types: Yankauer, Frasier, Poole, Adson
What is Yankauer suction used for?
- General purpose
- Suction of large volumes of fluid
- Used during dental scaling to remove excess fluid
What is Frasier suction used for?
Finer control suction, similar appearance to Yankauer
What is Poole suction used for?
- Cavity suction
- Good for large volumes e.g. abdominal lavage
- Guard reduces risk of viscera and omentum blocking tip
What is Adson suction used for?
- Spinal surgery
- Greater control of suction close to delicate structures by releasing finger from over the hole
What instruments are used for tissue manipulation?
- Thumb forceps
- Tissue forceps
- Retractors
- Block ended serrated dressing forceps
Name the different types of thumb forceps
- Adson/Adson-Brown
- Gillies
- Lanes, Treves
- DeBakey
What are Adson/Adson-Brown forceps used for?
- Fine tissue control
- GOod for skin
- Can have rat toothed or serrated ends
What are Gillies forceps used for?
Fine tissues, general purpose
What are Lanes and Treves forceps used for?
- Heavier duty
- General purpose
- Can be rat toothed
What are DeBakey forceps used for?
- Very atraumatic
- Suitable for chest, GI, liver etc
Name the different types of tissue forceps
- Allis
- Babcock
- Spay
Describe the purpose Allis forceps
- Robust
- Traumatic
- Only used on connective tissue or fascial planes
- Never for skin or a hollow viscus
Describe the purpose of Babcock forceps
- Fine
- Used on bladder, liver and lung
Describe the purpose of spay forceps
- Used to elevate uterine horn in cat spay
- Have a DeBakey grip (secure) but less traumatic
- Good for surgery of ear, bowel or urogenital tract as have very thin working end
Name the different types of retractors
- Gelpi
- Weitlaner, Wests
- Abdominal (Balfour, Gosset)
- Hohman
- Senn
- Handheld
What are Gelpi retractors used for?
- Excellent general purpose
- Sharp tips
- Especially good for joint surgery and spinal surgery
What are Weitlaner and West retractors used for?
- Excellent general purpose
- Sharp tips
- Retraction of skin and superficial soft tissue
Describe Gosset retractors
- Used in abdominal surgery
- Light, do not get in the way
- Rib retractor/laparotomy retractor
What are Hohman retractors used for?
- Retraction of bones/bone fragments during fracture repair
- Are handheld
What are Senn retractors used for?
Fat pad retraction in medial meniscus repair (handheld)
What are Balfour retractors used for?
Retraction of body wall during exploratory laparotomy
What are the pros and cons of handheld retractors?
- Pros: light, cheap
- Cons: need to be handheld
Name the handheld retractors
- Hohman
- Senn
Outline the use of block ended serrated dressing forceps for tissue manipulation
- Are cheap dressing forceps
- Minimal use during surgery
What type of instruments are needed in tissue reconstruction?
Needle holders
Name the different types of needle holders
- Mayo
- Olsen-Hegar
- McPhail
- Gillies
Which needle holders have a locking catch?
- All but Gillies
- I.e. Mayo, Olsen Hegar, McPhails
Which needle holders have scissors?
Olsen-Hegar and Gillies
Describe the Backhaus Towel clamp
- Used to secure drapes to the patient
- Very traumatic
- Pierce drape material
- Very secure
Describe the spay hook
Used to atraumatically lift the uterine horns within the abdomen
What instruments are commonly used in ophthalmic surgery?
- Castroviejo needle holders
- Castroviejo corneal scissors
What are Rongeurs used for?
- Orthopaedic surgery
- “nibbling” through edges of bone
What are periostal elevators used for?
- Orthopaedic surgery
- Used to remove periosteum from bone
What are burdizzos used for?
Bloodless castration of large animals
What are emasculators used for?
Open castration of large animals
