Surgical bean bags provide safe patient positioning

Imagine how much easier the surgery would be if the operating table could be magically shaped to fit the patient’s body, keeping it exactly where you need it to be. Surgeons could lean perfectly to access the affected area for surgery.

That technology already exists! In fact, it is an extremely simple bean bag arrangement; Vacuum suction helps to shape the bean bag.

A bean bag is placed on the table and the patient is placed on it. The bean bag is placed under the affected area and a pump is used to create stiffness in the bag and maintain the patient’s position throughout the procedure. Bean bags come in a variety of sizes and shapes, so a perfect mold of the patient can be achieved.

Beanbags are MRI-tested and safe, and are often used to reduce patient mobility during head and neck scans. A 2005 investigation in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine determines that a used bean bag vacuum neck positioner significantly reduced movement that causes patient errors during MRIs.

This is especially true for infants and young children, who have their entire bodies wrapped in bean bags to keep them from moving during a scan. This negates the need to sedate infants and young children and improves the accuracy of MRI results.

Due to the plastic used for the outer layer of surgical bean bags, they can be cleaned and sterilized, ready for the next procedure. Having a reusable object is cost effective and saves storage space.

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