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Surgical retractors designed to temporarily separate and hold back the full thickness of an abdominal wall incision, exposing and providing access to other tissues, organs, or abdominal structures. Abdominal wall surgical retractors consist of handheld, manual or mechanically operated instruments that are available in a variety of shapes and styles; most mechanically operated instruments can retain position once set (i.e., self-retained retractors). The retractors are used to facilitate surgical procedures inside the abdomen. Dedicated abdominal wall retractors are available for particular abdominal structures and/or organs (e.g., ribs, liver).
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