Needle holders are one of the most crucial and sought after instruments for cardiovascular surgery. They respond precisely and transmit feeling to the surgeon’s fingers while also providing comfort in hand.

What are the characteristics of needle holders ?
- Bullet shaped with a uniform tip.
- Finesse of ratchets for smoother manipulation.
- Edges are curved to permit easy sliding of the suture.
- Jaws are available with both diamonite coating and TC inserts to offer the stronger and most stable needle grasp for every needle size without damaging it.
- Anti-glare surface to avoid disruption from light reflection.

Needle holders are classified by the serration pitch of their jaws which are dedicated to specific sizes of needles.

How to consider the quality of needle holders
Parallelism of the jaws’ surface must be exact to obtain the most precise control of sutures. To achieve parallelism, place a ruler vertically between the jaws; the ruler must stay perfectly aligned with the instrument.
Elasticity of the shanks is also essential to obtain a precise feeling of the needle. To test elasticity, engage the first ratchet and let the needle holder fall 10 cm. If the ratchet opens, your needle holder is too loose.
The quality of the gripping force can be determined by clamping the needle in the jaws, then lock the instrument in the second ratchet. If the needle can be rotated easily by hand, then the instrument needs to be fixed and should be delivered to our customer service company, Petel Services.

What is the basic care
Always use the recommended size of needles with a needle holder. This will ensure longevity of the jaws and atraumatic suturing process. Also, avoid catching steel cable with a needle holder. This could potentially damage the jaws or compromise their parallelism. Instead, use a “cable wire twister.”