ACIG

20 Quo vadis - Reusable surgical instruments Changes affecting reusable surgical instruments introduced by the new Medical Device Regulation (MDR) - Regulation (EU) 2017/745 The history of surgical instrument use The use of surgical instruments has a long history. Procedures such as stemming the flow of blood from injuries, as well as the treatment of broken bones, infected wounds and chronic ulcers have been part of surgery’s remit from the beginning. Evidence of surgical interventions where those being treated survived exists from as early as the stone age. Little is known as a whole about their success and recoveries. Surgical techniques have not been the exclusive domain of us humans (homo sapiens). An over 50,000-year-old neander- thal skeleton discovered in a cave in modern Iraq is a testament to arm amputation. It was in an- tiquity - during the time of Hippocrates - that classical surgery was developed. Surgical writings that serve as evidence from antiquity include the texts On Setting Joints and On Bone Fractures from the Corpus Hippocraticum (5th century BCE). Even back then, over 200 different instruments were employed during operations. ENGLISH Obstetrical forceps by Adam Elias von Siebold (1775-1828) Author: Dr. Wolfgang Sening, Managing Director Senetics GmbH & Co. KG wolfgang.sening@senetics.de