Comparison of a New Automatically Controlled Electrocoagulator (Valleylab NS 2000-INSTANT RESPONSE™ Technology) with a High-Frequency Coagulator

Abstract

Bipolar electrocoagulation is one of the most important procedures in modern neurosurgery. However, there are still many practical problems, especially tissue adherence to the tips of the coagulating forceps and the difficulty removing carbonized clots from the tips. Both make the process less accurate and more time-consuming. To prevent formation of coagulum, recently, irrigation with a saline solution and coating of the forceps tips with a special metal have been tried. In this work, we compare a new bipolar electrocoagulator with automatic output control in relation to tissue impedance (Auto Suture - Valleylab NS 2000 with INSTANT RESPONSE technology) with a high-frequency coagulator (Erbotom ICC 350, Erbe). The femoral arteries and nerves of Wistar rats, weighing on average 360 g, were prepared and coagulation was carried out with variable power settings during a constant time (3 seconds). Sections were stained with haematoxylin-eosin, van Gieson and Luxol-Fast-Blue for histological examination. Coagulation with Erbotom ICC 350 resulted in tissue sticking to the tips of the forceps in all cases, regardless of the power chosen. With the new electrocoagulator, tissue adherence to the forceps tips was not seen. With the new system, effective coagulation was also achieved at comparably lower power settings.

Comparison of the Thermal Spread of Three Different Electrosurgical Generators on Rat Uterus: A Preliminary Experimental Study

“…It is well known that extended duration of application increases the level of lateral thermal damage in tissue [26]. Therefore, we could not predict the tissue effect of these units after longer activation periods in this study [27, 28]. The ex vivo evaluation of the tissues might reveal different results than the in vivo effects of the currents because of the alterations in tissue resistance and conductivity [3, 8, 13].…”