Project Overview

Anastamoses are used to join two hollow structures, and allow passage of contents. This is a common technique used throughout surgery on bowel, vascular and urologic structures. One of the principles is for the anastamosis to be tension-free, however, there is no study determining the acceptable level of tension for biologic structures. I believe that this information does not exist largely due to inadequate tools to measure tissue tension. What I envision is a device that can be used in the operating room with a series of hooks or other structure to delicately hold both ends of tissue and when approximated and released determine objectively the amount of tension/force pulling these structures apart. Surgeons can use this information to determine if more dissection should be done to relieve this tension or if it is adequate. Handheld force meters and tension meters exist, however to be able to be used intraoperatively on sterile tissue, it needs to be sterilizable, or have a disposable component, it needs to measure small forces, and needs to be quick to set up.

Team Picture

Contact Information

Team Members

• David Lahm - Team Leader
• Tianna Garcia - Communicator
• Leslie Franczek - BSAC
• Shelby Mochal - BWIG
• Morgan Kemp - BPAG

Advisor and Client

• Dr. Jeremy Rogers - Advisor
• Dr. Brian Le - Client

Related Projects

• Spring 2018: Anastamosis tension meter
• Fall 2017: Anastamosis tension meter