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