Curette

A curette is a surgical instrument designed for scraping or debriding biological tissue or debris in a biopsy, excision, or cleaning procedure. In form, the curette is a small hand tool, often similar in shape to a stylus; at the tip of the curette is a small scoop, hook, or gouge. The verb to curette means "to scrape with a curette", and curettage (/ˌkʊərɪˈtɑːʒ/ or /ˌkjʊərɪˈtɑːʒ/) is treatment that involves such scraping.

Illustration from a United States patent for an ornate curette (Michelson, 1988)

A curette in sterile packaging, for scraping the interior of the uterus

Spoon-shaped curette.

Uses

Some examples of medical use of a curette include:

• the removal of impacted ear wax;
• dilation and curettage of the uterus, a gynecologic procedure;
• excision of many benign tumors and some malignant tumors;^[1]
• excision of the adenoids (adenoidectomy) by an otolaryngologist;^[2]
• to scrape tartar deposits from tooth enamel with a periodontal curette.

See also

• Ear pick

References

1. Bogle, Melissa A; Joseph, Aaron K (2005-01-01), Robinson, June K; Sengelmann, Roberta D; Hanke, C William; Siegel, Daniel Mark (eds.), "Chapter 4 - Instruments and Materials", Surgery of the Skin, Edinburgh: Mosby, pp. 59–66, doi:10.1016/b978-0-323-02752-6.50009-2, ISBN 978-0-323-02752-6, retrieved 2020-12-16
2. Truong, Mai Thy; Koltai, Peter J. (2020-01-01), Friedman, Michael; Jacobowitz, Ofer (eds.), "Chapter 70 - Current Techniques of Adenoidectomy", Sleep Apnea and Snoring (Second Edition), London: Elsevier, pp. 422–425, doi:10.1016/b978-0-323-44339-5.00070-5, ISBN 978-0-323-44339-5, S2CID 240634800, retrieved 2020-12-16

External links

• Curette images from the Waring Historical Library at the Medical University of South Carolina