Bovie Medical Insights

Used in a wide variety of surgeries, electrosurgical procedures are designed to assist in surgical cutting or to specifically control bleeding that is caused by coagulation at the surgical site.   

While today's generation of electrosurgery generators has seen vast improvement since the first electrosurgical device was used successfully in 1926, the principle remains the same.  Electrosurgery enables doctors to make precise cuts during surgical procedures while simultaneously helping in the prevention of blood loss during operations of all types.  Electrosurgical equipment is now routinely used in a variety of medical areas, including:

When electrosurgery is used during operations there is always a risk of fire, and with over 80% of all surgical procedures today involving electrosurgery, the risk is frequently present in the operating theater. This article addresses some common concerns and questions regarding OR fires and offers some strategies for reducing their occurrence.

What is the most common cause of operating room fires? Three factors must be present for a fire to happen:

Electrosurgery was introduced in 1926 as a means to improve the outcome of surgical procedures that are highly vascular in nature. 



Bovie® is a registered trademark When a doctor says pass me the bovie, he is using a generic term incorrectly, because Bovie® is a registered trademark of Bovie Medical Corporation. The reason for this improper usage goes back to the invention of electrosurgical equipment and the world of electrosurgery by William T. Bovie. Bovie was a Harvard PhD who along with neurosurgeon Dr. Harvey Cushing who performed the first procedure, and together brought this wonderful invention to life in 1926. While Cushing had some products named after him, Bovie became the term used most commonly for any electrosurgical generator or accessory used with the unit.

More common with each passing year, electrosurgery is becoming a very important tactic in our modern medical offices and clinics. From the smallest blemish removal to controlling bleeding in an extensive surgery site, the electrosurgical unit and accessories can be the best choice for excellent results.

The basic power source is the electrosurgical unit or ESU. This generator produces current and voltage for the physician to use in various ways. Through the use of electrosurgery accessories, such as blade, ball, needle and loop electrodes, the physician can make precise cuts in tissue, control bleeding, independently or simultanelusly. Since it is actually the electrical field in front of the electrode that is doing the cutting and not a physical instrument, there is less pressure needed and more precision can be obtained.

One of the side effects of this type of surgery is that some smoke is produced. This smoke is due to the explosion of cells to create the incision or the dehydration of cells created during the coagulation process. Therefore another important group of electrosurgery accessories are smoke evacuation systems. These systems will take any the majority of the smoke generated by the surgery and filter out any harmful particles. These smoke evacuation systems are important, and should be part of every procedure using an ESU..

A complete understanding of electrosurgery and the accessories used is important for all levels of medical practices. Our eBook, Understanding Electrosurgery can assist everyone from salespeople to office personnel, including the doctor to have a better understanding of this important and useful product.