title: A new compound curved tapercut needle for oral surgery.
abstract: A new compound curved tapercut needle has been designed and developed for oral mucous membrane closure from a unique stainless steel alloy, American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM) 45500. This tapercut needle has a short, relatively straight point, followed by a curved distal section. Despite its geometry, it exhibited similar sharpness as well as resistance to bending and breakage, as did the standard tapercut needle with a single radius of curvature manufactured from the same alloy. The design of this new needle enabled the surgeon to pass it through the oral mucous membrane with a greater accuracy to a controlled depth and length of bite than the standard tapercut needle with a single radius of curvature. In addition, the new needle design aids in the suturing of mucous membranes in confined spaces.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville 22908.
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Hoard
authors.forename: D A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Franz
authors.forename: K T
authors.initials: KT
authors.lastname: Bellian
authors.forename: R F
authors.initials: RF
authors.lastname: Edlich
mesh_terms: D004548:Elasticity; D004867:Equipment Design; D004868:Equipment Failure; D006801:Humans; D008422:Materials Testing; D009061:Mouth Mucosa / Q000601:surgery; D009339:Needles; D013193:Stainless Steel / Q000737:chemistry; D013314:Stress, Mechanical; D013499:Surface Properties; D013525:Surgical Instruments; D013536:Suture Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation
chemical_list: D013193:Stainless Steel