Contributed by Mika Sinanan, MD, at theUniversity of Washington Medical School, Seattle, WA
Taper |
Tapered: these tips are usedfor soft tissue. Characteristically they are rounded and produce thesmallest hole, minimizing trauma.Cutting: these tips are used for skinrepair. They are triangular-shaped and are useful in puncturing toughtissue but produce a larger hole than tapered tips. Cutting tips arenot used intra-abdominally due to the risk of blood vessel ordelicate tissue damage.
Regularcutting tips: the cutting edge is on the inner curvature.
Reverse cutting tips: thecutting edge is on the outer curvature.
Diamond Point: useful for attaching suture materialand/or synthetic grafts to tendons or cartilage.
Bluntpoint: these needle tips have no cutting edge and are used forfriable tissues, such as the liver, where cutting and piercing wouldbe detrimental.
Lancet, orSpatula: primarily for Opthalmic surgery, for the repair ofmuscle, retina, and delicate eyelid tissue. Cutting edge may be onthe inner or outer curvature.
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