Surgical staplers are used to close wounds and have advantages over traditional sutures. Different models are available, including disposable and reusable staplers. Staples and clips can be used on various wounds and incisions, and scars may form at the site of staple insertion. Patients should discuss wound closure methods and aftercare with their surgeon.
A surgical stapler is a medical device that is used to place surgical staples. Staples are used to close wounds ranging from intestinal resections to skin incisions and are found extensively throughout the world in surgical settings. Before undergoing surgery, patients may wish to ask their surgeons what method will be used for wound closure and whether there will be any special precautions for aftercare. Patients should also alert their surgeons to any metal allergies, as surgical staples are usually alloys and the surgeon will not want to place the staples if a patient is allergic to a metal such as nickel.
Surgical staplers were developed in response to concerns about the healing of traditional sutures. The evidence seemed to suggest that sutures were more prone to leakage and separation, although further studies indicate that conventional sutures are perfectly safe when placed correctly. However, the development of the surgical stapler also created a number of advantages, including speed, accuracy and consistency of wound closure, which made the stapler a useful tool in the operating room. Both stapling and suturing are taught to surgeons, and training is also provided on the appropriate settings for each technique.
There are different models of surgical staplers on the market, intended for different types of staple placement. Some surgeons like to use disposable staplers, which come with disposable cartridges and are used on a single patient. Others use reusable stainless steel staplers. In this case, a disposable cartridge is used and the stapler is sterilized after use so that it can be used on another patient. Reusable staplers generate less surgical waste, but energy is required to sterilize them, so the net environmental impact compared to a disposable product is not much different.
A related tool to the surgical stapler is a clip applier, a device used to apply surgical clips. Both clips and staples can be used on many different types of surgical wounds and incisions. Once the healing process is complete, they can be removed. Removal is done with a surgical staple remover designed to remove staples with minimal trauma to the surgical site.
On superficial wounds, the surgical stapler will create scars. The incision site itself will form a scar, and small scars may form at the sites where the staples were inserted. Certain techniques can be used to minimize scarring and promote healing with minimal scarring, and these can be discussed with a surgeon if a patient is concerned about the potential for scarring after a surgical procedure.
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