The two instruments described represent the application of some of the principles of mechanics for the improvement of surgical instruments. In performing the submucous operation for the correction of septal deflections, the anterior portion of the perpendicular plate frequently offers considerable resistance to the ordinary bone-cutting forceps. Breaking the bone in this area is both dangerous and uncomfortable to the patient. I therefore devised a forceps with a mechanical advantage of about four, so that the same force used in the hand gives four times the cutting power at the biting edge. It is surprising how easy the hardest septal bone is cut with this added mechanical advantage. The female portion of the forceps is slightly beveled, so that the cut piece is held gently in the instrument
Forceps and mastoid rongeur devised by author.
and is easily shaken out. This saves the time necessary for removing the cut particles