Product May Aid Endoscopic Radial Artery Harvesting

SUNNYVALE, Calif. — Starion Instruments, a surgical device company, today announced that a recent study from the University of Milan found that Starion’s Tissue Ligating Shears safely assist in endoscopic harvesting of the radial artery and saphenous vein.

The study was presented at the 2008 Annual Scientific Meeting of the International Society for Minimally Invasive Cardiothoracic Surgery (ISMICS).

Minimally invasive vessel harvesting is an important technique for coronary artery bypass graft procedures. While devices are available for either radial artery or saphenous vein harvesting, access to a single system with which to perform both procedures has been limited, according to a Starion press release.

The study, “Safety and Efficacy of a Single System for Minimally Invasive Harvesting of Both Radial Artery and Saphenous Vein,” was led by Guido Gelpi, MD, from the Cardiovascular Division of L. Sacco Hospital, University of Milan, in Italy. 

Gelpi and his team assessed the safety and efficacy of a single system (Starion Tissue Ligating Shears and Datascope retractor and vessel extractor) in the harvesting of radial arteries and saphenous veins.

Forty patients were prospectively randomized. The researchers endoscopically harvested radial arteries from 10 patients and saphenous veins from another 10 patients using the Starion/Datascope system. They also harvested radial arteries from 10 patients and saphenous veins from another 10 patients using conventional, open techniques.

Besides the smaller incisions and higher patient satisfaction, the endoscopically harvested groups presented with no skin dehiscence, according to the study.

Source: Starion