Business news agency in January 11th, the current U. S. Department of surgical suture products with annual sales of up to $2 billion, is expected in 2011 this figure will reach $1 billion, has become an important branch of the world's medical devices.

The stapler is the use of a global office supplies most widely, the development and application of more than a century. The use of stapler can be single page documents, text data binding, it is convenient for people to search and read, is not easy to be lost. Inspired by the stapler, Europe a love brains surgeon, the Hungarian people humer Hulti whim: exploring the development of a similar to the stapler that medical equipment products and for wound closure, so as to greatly reduce the time doctors stitched the wound. He will practice this idea of pay, and finally in 1908 to develop the first medical suture is similar to that of the stapler. The machine weighs 3.6 kg, can be used for general surgery after the skin suture, in order to replace the manual suture wound. Dr. Hulti has therefore been hailed by the international medical community as "the father of the surgical instrument". According to reports, the early development of the surgical suture device using "staples" mostly stainless steel nail, then European manufacturers developed titanium nail, nail inert polymer material made of plastic and flexible metal wound closure buckle (abroad will be classified as surgical suture nail category). Since the medical profession has already been (later catgut suture) such as closure devices, why develop surgical stapler?

Widely used in Europe and America

The European Medical Association has summarized the advantages of surgical closure to the following:

One is convenient and easy to use, save the time of suture wound, so as to greatly reduce the work intensity of the doctor.

Second is the use of surgical suture is of some special organs, such as colorectal resection of the lesion, hernia surgery and groin surgery, surgery after conveniently and firmly bonding operation. These special organs because in the current motion state (such as intestines peristalsis, groin is in the thighs and abdomen combination, vulnerable to exercise thigh), such as the use of conventional catgut suture, wound accidentally, it is easy to crack, thus affecting the wound healing.　　Third, using surgical stapling heartbroken and other special organ engagement very close, no leakage of blood (blood) or intestinal liquid, resulting in pollution of the abdominal organs, causing inflammation and other accidents.

In the western developed countries, general surgery, ENT, thoracic surgery and other operation are now in use of surgical suture device used for instead of manual suturing the wound.

Although the Hungarian doctor early in 1908 that has developed the world's first for a practical surgical suture device used for prototype, but until the last century in the early 1960s, the new invention has been shelved, unpopular, because the medical community in Europe had the to skeptical, think it impractical. In 1964, an American entrepreneur Leon Hirsch of Hungarian physician inventions were bold improvement, and introduced a practical new surgical suture device used for (trade name auto suture, which means automatic suture device). But even if the invention is advanced and practical, are skeptical of the American Association of surgeons until the late 1970s is recommended American colleagues try to the instrument to replace the manual suturing wound, in order to test the applicability and safety. In 1977, by the famous American manufacturers of medical devices (ussc) developed a general surgical stapler (trade name Ethicon) in the country successfully listed, because of its advantages such as easy operation, convenient maintenance and the like in the United States market became an instant hit and can be so far in the United States surgical field application. In 1998, USSC is Johnson pharmaceutical company merger, the stapler was renamed Covidien selling for many years.

It is necessary to explain medical suture device not only can use steel nails, can also use catgut or silk suture. The use of different specifications of a steel nail or suture in a patient's different organs or parts. There are many different specifications and materials for the use of steel nails for surgical suture. Such as bending nails, round nail nail and nail special, special throat surgery. Now, Europe and the United States medical circles using surgical stapler is quite widespread, not only general surgical stapler, even abdominal surgery, Department of surgery, thoracic surgery, plastic surgery and other can use stapler for wound closure operation. The application of the optical fiber as the basis of the advanced endoscopic surgery, such as laparoscopic surgery and the application of the endoscope, and laid the technical foundation for the popularization and application of the surgical suture device. In addition to the endoscope and direct vision operation, the suture device has played a role that can not be played by hand stitching. Surgeons with television screens and stitching, can be used for a variety of complex surgical procedures.

New market outlook can be expected

A surgical stapler in the 1990s using the commonly used steel nail, so after the wound healing must to do a second operation, remove the nail in the abdominal cavity of a patient of steel. This means to open two knife from over the pain of patients. After 2007, foreign medical device manufacturers developed to be absorbed by the human body can absorb the suture or surgical plastic nail and other new equipment products, which is to avoid the patient to open the 2 knife pain. According to reports, this can be absorbed by the human body to absorb the suture or plastic nail system using a kind of polymer material called polyethylene glycol acid. Its stiffness and flexibility are in line with medical requirements. More importantly, the material will automatically decompose into carbon dioxide and water in a certain period of time, so no harm to human body. But the nail with a surgical stapler used so far in fact is titanium nail. Because the nail high strength, volume is small and of human organs and tissues inert and less likely to cause infection, titanium screw only drawback is on a small number of patients can cause allergies, because titanium mixed with trace elements of Ni, which will cause skin itching, rash and other symptoms to titanium itself will not cause allergic. Nevertheless, titanium nail also has its advantages, namely the use of CT or MRI of medical diagnostic imaging machine to scan can be clearly observed organ suture site healing degree for doctors to make correct judgment. And the use of plastic nails is difficult to achieve this effect.

According to a report published last year the United States famous consulting firm Frost & Sullivan disclosure: at present the United States surgical stapler products (including suture, suture equipment, annual sales of up to $20 billion, is expected in 2011 this figure will reach $22.8 billion. Suture instrument products has become an important branch of medical equipment. European surgical instruments are not as large as the United States, but there are about 1 billion euros. Other countries and regions of the surgical suture device product market growth is also very impressive. But on the whole, in addition to the industrialized countries, such as Japan, Singapore and South Korea, other countries / regions surgical stapling instrument product sales together only hundreds of millions of dollars.

It is understood, have been developed abroad listed surgical stapler is divided into: linear stapler (i.e. using conventional gut and thread and suture closure device), circular stapler (applicable to the cavity tract surgery), linear cutting stapler, purse stitching instrument, skin fascia closure device, throat, suture, thoracoscopic special suture device and other special suture device class instruments.

Domestic market to be developed

Our country from 1976 started to develop domestic surgical suture for new products, time not later than abroad how much, but because of surgical suturing device developed by the early operation and use too complex and not easy to maintain such shortcomings, so it is difficult to be in domestic clinical medical profession for large-scale popularization and application.

After 90 years of the last century, with the rapid development of our national economy, large cities on the coast hospital directly from the United States and other developed countries imported a number of advanced technology surgical stapler device products, for clinical use, including thoracoscopic suture and throat suture for special specifications of the surgical stapler product. Driven by imported products, coupled with the huge demand in the domestic market, China's surgical sewing machine production began to speed. At present, including Shanghai, Jiangsu Changzhou, Suzhou and other cities, including more than a dozen companies in the production of a surgical stapler product, it is estimated that its products in total sales has hundreds of millions of yuan of the scale. But compared with the developed countries, the domestic sewing machine still has a lot of deficiencies (especially in the technical performance).

Our country has a large number of rural areas, the total number of township hospitals up to tens of thousands, while the township hospital doctors are very eager to have convenient operation, maintenance simple, affordable medical equipment products, such as sewing machine. If the domestic manufacturers can develop these products as soon as possible, there will be a broad market prospects.