PRACTICA OTO-RHINO-LARYNGOLOGICA
Vol. 102 No. 7 July 2009
Tonsillectomy with Harmonic Scalpel
Mami Matsubara, Kazuhiko Shoji, Atsuhito Takahashi,
Takehiro Iki and Masanobu Mizuta
(Tenri Hospital)
Tonsillectomy is one of the most common surgical procedures performed by otolaryngologists. Various devices have been introduced in recent years to achieve hemostasis with minimal tissue injury. The Harmonic
Scalpel is a useful surgical instrument for hemostasis, causing less injury to surrounding tissues than other instruments. The advantages of the Harmonic
Scalpel in tonsillectomy were evaluated in this study. We reviewed 308 patients who all underwent tonsillectomy using the Harmonic
Scalpel in our department from 2002 to 2008. The mean operation time for tonsillectomy was 24.6 min. The number of postoperative hemorrhage cases was 19 (6.3%). In most cases, the volume of intraoperative blood loss was too small to measure. We conclude that the Harmonic
Scalpel should be used widely in tonsillectomy. It is useful in reducing both the operative time and procedure-related blood loss, and is easily mastered.
Key words :tonsillectomy, Harmonic Scalpel, operation time