2018 ACS Survey: Anzen Safety Scalpel Design is More Intuitive Compared to Competitors

December 11, 2018

By: Adeline Yi, Anzen™ Product Manager

According to key findings of the 2018 ACS Survey, the Anzen Safety Scalpel provides what surgeons and surgical techs have been asking for: a more intuitive and easy to use safety scalpel. The advantage lies in two primary design differences:

  1. A moving blade instead of a moving shield.
  2. Placing the activation button on the side rather than on the top of the device.

The results are clear. When rating its intuitiveness, 71% of those surveyed stated the sliding blade of the Anzen scalpel is more intuitive than the sliding shield of competitor scalpels. Also, 75.7% of respondents preferred the Anzen because the activation button is on the side, rather than on top like other safety scalpels. When rating how easily the blade retracts and extends, they gave the Anzen a score of 4.57 out of 5.

Here’s what else we learned:

Overall Safety Scalpel Awareness

Prior to the survey, 51% of respondents were very aware of the existence of safety scalpels. Most people (42.5%) were familiar with plastic handle safety scalpels rather than metal handles.

Ease of Learning

When rating its ease of learning, participants gave the Anzen an average score of 4.65, where 1 is Strongly Disagree and 5 is Strongly Agree.

Adoption of Safety Scalpel

When asked if they would use the Anzen in their facility, the surgeons and surgical techs said yes. They gave it an average score of 4.45, where 1 is Strongly Disagree and 5 is Strongly Agree.

2018 ACS Survey Builds From Previous Surveys

In our 2016 ACS Survey, we learned that end users were interested in adopting safety scalpels, but had not found a safety scalpel that addressed their concerns. In fact, 76% of respondents stated they would not use a safety scalpel if:

  • It was inconvenient to expose or retract the blade.
  • The safety components obstructed the line of sight.

According to our 2017 ACS Survey, 82.5% of surgeons preferred Anzen’s sliding blade design for these reasons:

  • The moving blade design feels more familiar, much like the experience of using a box cutter, as opposed to a moving shield.
  • The thumb travels a shorter distance than with a moving shield.
  • The proprietary Anzen locking feature prevents the blade from inadvertently moving or retracting.

In our 2018 ACS Survey, we wanted to learn what specific features of the Anzen Safety Scalpel make it more intuitive. So we took the research a step further, leading us to our key findings: the moving shield and the side button allow surgeons to focus on the task at hand, without hesitation. Mission accomplished.

We’ve been studying sharps safety needs since 2016 and have put that knowledge to work to improve sharps safety in the operating room. By incorporating their feedback into our safety scalpel design, we specifically address the needs of the surgical staff. We didn’t make assumptions. We know because they tolds us. Then we engineered a safety scalpel that truly delivers what surgical facilities really need.