As successful surgery starts with good exposure, it follows that responsive instrument makers include good retractor systems in their repertoire of offerings.

"Good" can certainly be applied to Buxton's family of Aim Retractors. These devices are ideally suited for the small, precise, yet sturdy demands of hand and foot surgery. Aim retractors feature spaced and unobtrusive prongs (your choice of sharp or blunt) mounted on surprisingly strong and stable arms.

Buxton's contribution to the Aim retractor legacy is its offering of this item with a variety of prong lengths. One can choose from retractors with a reach as shallow as 4 mm or as deep as 15 mm. One can choose from models 70 mm or 100 mm long or a special bayonet arms version. Strength and stability can be attributed as much to the geometry of its function as to its form.

When compared with its longer and heavier alternatives, the short length of the Aim retractor translates to less bulk for a given, albeit short, span of retraction. The arms may be spread or contracted through a simple yet clever arrangement of a fine screw and mechanical linkage. This construction not only balances the forces between both sides, but by joining the arms about midpoint, the device's overall stability and durability is enhanced.

First impression of the Aim retractor is that it is a "two-handed" retractor: one to turn the knurled knob of the screw and the other to prevent the rest of the device from turning with the screw. However, with a little practice and developed finger dexterity the operator can learn to open, close, position and generally manipulate the retractor into and out of most wound sites with only one hand.

Hand & Footnotes, Vol. 1, No. 2