Adapter Couples Self-Retaining Surgical Retractor with Hand-Held Retractors

Background:

Orthopedic surgeons require unfettered access to exposed bone. That means keeping the skin, subcutaneous fat, tissues, and muscles out of the way with retractors. Currently, there are two common types of retractors for this purpose—self-retaining retractors, which stay open on their own, and hand-held retractors, which need an assistant to hold them. The current disclosure describes an adapter that couples the hand-held retractors to the self-retaining retractor, enabling the hand-held retractors to be self-retaining. This eliminates the need for an assistant and affords the surgeon better exposure to the bone, thereby increasing the efficiency of surgery while reducing cost.

Technology Overview:

The device combines the functions of a hand-held retractor, used on soft tissue near the bone, with those of a self-retaining retractor, used on surface levels like skin and subcutaneous fat. The device consists of two sleeves slipped over the arms of the hand-held retractors. The inner surfaces of the sleeves have inverted V-shaped projections to capture the tips of the self-retaining retractor. When the tips are inserted into the projections on the sleeves, the self-retaining retractor secures the hand-held retractors and keeps them open. The adapter can be used with equipment that is readily available in every orthopedic operating room. It will be made of sterilizable metal or durable plastic to guarantee years of use.

Advantages:

Increases efficiency of surgery.

Reduces costs.