Thermocautery

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A thermocautery ( ancient Greek θερμὁς thermós “warm” and καίω kaioburn ”) is a surgical instrument used in medicine for the targeted destruction of tissue .

The targeted destruction of tissue, known as cauterization , is used to stop the bleeding quickly . It therefore finds u. a. Use in operations on the male member , such as circumcision . Historically, the metallic surgical instrument was first heated in a fire . A historically common design is the gas-powered Paquelin burner, which makes a hollow platinum tip filled with finely divided platinum glow . Electrically heated cautery is also known as galvano cautery or more modernly as electrocautery .

Electrocautery is used in ophthalmic surgery, for example in strabismus operations . Here they ensure fast wound closure in areas with a high blood flow, such as the muscle insertions of the vertical obliqui , to which the vortex veins are directly adjacent. They are also used in certain cases to cut through muscle tissue and tendons . Even with the so-called limbal incision , the vessels can be gently closed with careful cauterization.

Another ophthalmological area of ​​application for the electrocautery is the removal of small eyelid and conjunctival tumors, as well as the closure of the teardrop in pathologically “ dry eyes ”.

See also

literature

Individual evidence

  1. Margret Liehn, Lutz Steinmüller, JR Döhler: Operating manual: Basics, instruments, operating procedure . ISBN 978-3-642-16845-1
  2. ^ Wolf Dieter Schäfer: Squint operations . Springer Verlag 1976, doi : 10.1007 / 978-3-642-66413-7_28 , ISBN 978-3-540-07782-4
  3. ^ Franz Grehn: Ophthalmology . 30th edition. Springer Verlag, Berlin 2008, ISBN 978-3-540-75264-6 , p. 123