Reprocessing of instruments for minimal invasive surgery. State of the artand prospects

The development of instruments for minimal invasive surgery (MIS) is moving in the direction of the miniaturization of mechanical components, a combin ation of multiple functions in a single instrument, and the introduction of new techniques, in particular those reducing bleeding and thermal damage w hen cutting blood vessels. These tendencies have consequences for the repro cessability of the instruments, usually making reprocessing more difficult. In particular cleaning - the removal of contaminations from tiny lumina, j oints, etc., is highly demanding. In addition, proof of successful cleaning is difficult, and no standardised method of doing this in practice is curr ently available. An overview of the problems associated with the reprocessi ng of instruments for minimal invasive surgery is given, and a numbers of p ossible solutions are discussed.