Thermographic Monitoring of Damage Induced Through Bipolar Forceps During Tissue Coagulation

Bipolar forceps, powered by high-frequency alternating electrical current, are the main tools for electrocoagulation in surgical operations. Coagulation occurs through thermal heating; however, excessive temperatures can induce tissue damage. The study aims to measure the temperature increment between bipolar forceps’ tips on ex vivo biological tissues from the liver and white and grey matter of the calf brain. Three forceps, disposable and reusable, are tested using electrical power of 5, 10 and 15 W applied for 5 s, penetrating 1 mm into the tissue; the same procedure is followed for all the 135 tests performed. Infrared thermal measurements are collected during the transient, statistically analyzed in terms of the median and scatter of the peak temperatures, and compared among the forceps types. The outcomes allow evidence that disposable forceps are more performing than reusable ones for all tissues, e.g., limit excessive thermal heating and experience lower scatter, potentially reducing the risk of unintended injury to adjacent or peripheral tissues when applied in surgical operations.