Surgical Instruments by Specialty - Quick Reference

Why Instrument Identification Matters

Instrument identification is one of the most heavily tested skill areas on the NBSTSA CST exam because it maps directly to daily practice. You are expected to recognize an instrument by name, silhouette, and function, and to know which specialty tray it belongs on. Use this sheet as a rapid-recall tool, not a first-time learning resource - pair it with pictures of the actual instruments during study sessions.

General Surgery

Instrument	Identifying Feature	Primary Use
Metzenbaum scissors	Long, thin, slightly curved blades	Cutting delicate tissue and fascia
Mayo scissors	Shorter, heavier, blunt-tipped	Cutting suture and heavier tissue
Kelly clamp	Serrated jaws, straight or curved, box lock	Clamping vessels and tissue
Crile clamp	Similar to Kelly, full-length serrations	Hemostasis on smaller vessels
Babcock forceps	Fenestrated, rounded, non-crushing jaws	Grasping bowel, appendix, fallopian tube
Allis forceps	Multiple interlocking teeth	Grasping fascia and firm tissue
Richardson retractor	L-shaped blade, right angle	Retracting abdominal wall
Deaver retractor	Long, curved, smooth blade	Deep abdominal retraction

Orthopedic Surgery

Instrument	Identifying Feature	Primary Use
Bone hook	Single sharp curved point	Manipulating and positioning bone fragments
Lambotte osteotome	Flat, beveled cutting edge	Cutting or shaping bone
Bone rongeur (double-action)	Cupped, spring-loaded jaws	Removing small bone fragments
Gigli saw	Flexible wire saw with handles	Sectioning bone in confined spaces
Kirschner wire (K-wire)	Thin smooth or threaded pin	Temporary bone fixation
Hohmann retractor	Narrow blade with sharp curved tip	Retracting soft tissue off bone

Cardiothoracic Surgery

Instrument	Identifying Feature	Primary Use
Sternal saw	Powered oscillating or reciprocating blade	Median sternotomy
Rib spreader (Finochietto)	Ratcheted, wide-opening frame	Spreading ribs for thoracotomy exposure
DeBakey forceps	Fine longitudinal serrations, atraumatic	Handling vascular tissue
Potts scissors	Angled blades with fine tips	Cutting vessel walls for anastomosis
Vascular clamp (bulldog)	Small spring clamp, atraumatic jaws	Temporary vessel occlusion

Neurosurgery

Instrument	Identifying Feature	Primary Use
Penfield dissector	Double-ended, blunt, gently curved	Dural and nerve tissue dissection
Kerrison rongeur	Footplate tip, up-biting jaw	Removing bone from spinal canal (laminectomy)
Leksell rongeur	Double-action, spoon-shaped jaws	Removing lamina and disc material
Bipolar forceps	Insulated tips, two prongs	Precision coagulation near nerves
Cottonoid patties	Radiopaque strip with string tail	Protecting neural tissue, absorbing fluid

Genitourinary and Gynecologic Surgery

Instrument	Identifying Feature	Primary Use
Heaney clamp	Curved jaw, longitudinal serrations	Clamping uterine pedicles
Uterine sound	Malleable, marked in centimeters	Measuring uterine cavity depth
Tenaculum	Single or double sharp curved hooks	Grasping and stabilizing the cervix
Van Buren sound	Graduated metal dilator, curved tip	Urethral dilation
Resectoscope	Telescope with wire loop electrode	Transurethral resection procedures

Ophthalmic Surgery

Instrument	Identifying Feature	Primary Use
Lid speculum	Wire frame, spring tension	Holding eyelids open
Colibri forceps	Fine tying platform tips	Handling corneal tissue and suture
Vannas scissors	Tiny, spring-handled, sharp tips	Cutting delicate ocular tissue
Phacoemulsification handpiece	Ultrasonic tip with irrigation/aspiration ports	Emulsifying and removing cataract lens

Study Strategy

• Group instruments by function first (cutting, clamping, grasping, retracting, dilating) - this is how the exam frames many questions.
• Learn eponyms alongside descriptive names; both appear on the exam.
• Practice sorting instruments onto the correct back table setup for a given procedure type.
• Pay attention to tip shape and jaw pattern - these are the most common distractors between similar-looking instruments.