Swann-Morton® Scalpel Blades

Blade shapes 10 - 12 plus the double-edged 40 blade used within Histology and the SG3 Minor Skin Graft blade for the Burns unit are all compatible with the associated No.3 fitment handles. Blade shapes 21 -24 are used for major invasive procedures and compatible with the associated range of No.4 fitment handles.

No.10 Blade: The No.10 blade with its curved cutting edge is one of the more traditional blade shapes and is used generally for making varying sizes of incision in skin and muscle. The No.10 is often utilised in more specialised surgeries such as for harvesting the radial artery during a coronary artery bypass operation, opening the bronchus during thoracic surgery, uterine incisions for a C-Section and for Inguinal hernia repair.

No.11 Blade: The No.11 is an elongated triangular blade sharpened along the hypotenuse edge with a strong pointed tip making it ideal for stab incisions needed when lancing an abscess or inserting a chest drain. It is held like a pencil and often upside down by the surgeon to prevent it inadvertently being inserted too deep.

No.12 Blade: The No.12 is a small, pointed, crescent shaped blade sharpened along the inside edge of the curve. It is sometimes utilised as a suture cutter but also for arteriotomies (surgical incision of an artery), parotid surgeries (facial salivary glands), mucosal cuts on a septoplasty (repair of nasal septum) and during cleft palate procedures, ureterolithotomies (calculus removal by incision of the ureter) and pyelolithotomies (surgical incision of the renal pelvis of a kidney for the removal of a kidney stone - also known as a pelviolithotomy).

No.21 Blade: The No.21 is a large version of the No.10 blade with a curved cutting edge and a flat, unsharpened back edge. Larger than the No.20 but smaller than the No.22.

No.22 Blade: The No.22 is a large version of the No.10 blade with a curved cutting edge and a flat, unsharpened back edge. Used for skin incisions in both cardiac and thoracic surgrey and to cut the bronchus in lung resection surgery. Larger than the No.20 and No.21

No.23 Blade: The No.23 is a "leaf-shaped" blade sharpened along its leading edge. Used for making long incisions such as an upper midline incision of the abdomen during the repair of a perforated gastric ulcer.

No.24 Blade: Slightly larger than the No.23 blade, the No.24 is more semi circular in shape and is again sharpened along its leading edge. Used for making long incisions in general surgery and also in autopsy procedures