A novel retractor for the anterior approach to the cervical spine

Abstract

Various types of retractors have been used in cervical disc operations. The most frequently used type is the Cloward's retractor. Caspar also designed a new retractor for cervical operations. The presented device is a new instrument for simple cervical disc herniation. It provides a significant surgical exposure area under the surgical microscope. When using this retractor, there is no need to use a vertebral spreader because the retractor itself can be used as a vertebral spreader and it is possible to carry out the Smith Robinson type fusion. This retractor has been used for over two hundred cases and there has not been any complication involving the carotid artery, trachea and esophagus. [Neurol Res 1999; 21: 43—44]