What Tools Should you Include With Your Custom Tray?
Custom trays are generally used for holding surgical instruments during a procedure. The tools can be classified into categories including cutting and dissecting instruments like scalpels, holding or grasping instruments like smooth and toothed forceps, hemostatic instruments like atraumatic hemostatic forceps, retractors like a blunt-toothed hook, and tissue unifying instruments like surgical needles. Whenever you are going to carry out a procedure, you may need one or a combination of these groups of tools for a successful operation. The following are individual instruments to carry along a custom tray.
Articulator
An articulator is a mechanical device used mostly in dentistry. Its primary role is to help in the fabrication of removable prosthodontics appliances, orthodontic appliances, as well as prosthodontics restorations There are numerous types of articulators including;
- Semi-adjustable articulator
- Fully adjustable articulator
- Anatomical articulator
- Adjustable articulator
- Disposable articulators
Bone cutter
Bone cutter is a surgical instrument for cutting or removing bones. Bone cutters are of many types including;
- Unpowered- this group of bone cutting instruments include saber saw and the hacksaw and their varieties. In many applications, the saw is utilized in special jigs to give accurate cuts for instance in knee surgery. In some procedures, specialized saws like Gigli saw are used.
- Reciprocating- this is a powered rotary oscillation which is applied to a specialized cutting instrument to give cuts that are smooth and controllable. It is used on numerous bones including skull and rib.
- Sonic- this cutter is still experimental. Its primary focus is to make use of high-frequency sound to remove a bone thereby providing the ability to cut. Currently, the production of sonic cutters that can be used for tissues is underway.
- Costotome- this is a specialized rib cutter for gaining access to the thoracic cavity. A costotome has two levers; one grasps the rib while the other cuts it.
Dilator
Otherwise referred to as dilatator, the dilator is a medical term with more than one meaning. First, it is a medical instrument used for dilation induction. Dilation means to expand a passage or opening like the cervix, esophagus, or urethra. A dilator could also refer to a pharmacological treatment for the purpose of inducing dilation like vasodilation, pupillary dilation, or cervical dilation.
Dermatome
A dermatome is an invasive medical apparatus used to produce thin slices of skin to make skin grafts. Reconstituting skin areas damaged by trauma or grade 3 burns is among its main applications. Dermatomes can be operated electrically or manually. The first of the dermatomes to be developed, drum dermatomes, were manually operated and debuted in 1930. Afterwards came the ones that were operated by air pressure like the brown dermatome. The brown dermatome is credited for its higher speed and precision in comparison to the drum dermatome. Electrical dermatomes came soon after the brown dermatome. They are better for cutting longer and thinner strips of skin. Free-hand knives are some examples of manual dermatomes. They have the disadvantage of cutting out grafts with irregular edges.
The above are some of the medical instruments that you may include with your custom tray as you head into the operation room. It is very critical that you ensure they are not contaminated to avoid unnecessary risk of the patient’s life. If you observe all the procedure rules, then the operation is bound to be a success.
