Mechanical performance of surgical needle holders.

A new quantitative measurement of surgical needle holder performance has been described that records the forces (clamping moment) applied by the needle holder jaws to curved surgical needles. This test has been used to determine the applied clamping forces of four different surgical needle holders made by one manufacturer. By relating the magnitude of the clamping moment of needle holder to the resistance to bending of curved surgical needles, we propose a new scientific basis for selecting surgical needle and needle holders for wound closure.