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Weighted Speculum

Self-retaining floor retractor for vaginal surgery — a weighted posterior blade sits in the posterior fornix, using gravity to retract the posterior vaginal wall.

Design​

  • Curved or flat blade seated in the posterior fornix
  • Heavy weight on the handle end, pulling the blade downward by gravity
  • Self-retaining — requires no active force from an assistant

Key Uses​

  • Posterior vaginal wall retraction for any vaginal operation
  • Freeing an assistant from retractor duty during extended cases
  • Working platform for vaginal hysterectomy, prolapse repair, VVF repair, urethral diverticulectomy, and other vaginal surgery

The weighted speculum is almost always paired with active retractors (Heaney, Breisky) for the anterior and lateral walls.

See also: Mouth Retractors (for a different kind of self-retention).