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A retractor is a surgical instrument used to separate and manipulate the edges of a surgical incision or wound, or to hold back underlying organs and tissues so that body parts underneath may be accessed.
The broad term retractor typically describes a simple steel tool possessing a curved, hooked, or angled blade, which when in place helps to maintain the desired position of a given region of tissue during surgery. These simple retractors may be handheld, clamped in place, or suspended at the end of a robotic arm. Retractors can also be "self-retaining," and not need to be held once inserted, having two or more opposing blades or hooks which are separated via spring, ratchet, worm gear or other method. The term retractor is also used to describe distinct, hand-cranked devices such as rib spreaders with which surgeons may forcefully drive tissues apart to obtain exposure. Different surgery specialties can have specific kinds of retractors - e.g., for certain kinds of spinal surgery, such as Minimally Invasive Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusions, some retractors are fitted both with suction and with fiberoptic lights to keep deep surgical wounds both dry and illuminated.
Surgical assistants, whether they be specifically Certified Surgical Assistants, Registered Nurse First Assistants, Physicians Assistants, or Surgical Technologists, may assist surgeons in the process of retraction.