Hello, welcome to Beyond The Blade
This is your centralized hub for practical, retractor-based knowledge. Explore setup guides, frame comparisons, and clinical best practices designed to help you maintain hands-free stability and preserve workflow in demanding surgeries.
Surgical Procedures
Explore clinical insights and exposure strategies designed to secure stable, hands-free access in compleax surgical specialties.
- by Thompson Surgical
Learn why liver surgery exposure depends on stability, blade positioning, working space, and adaptability, not simply retractor size or force.
- by Thompson Surgical
Why Stable Hands-Free Retraction Matters in ALIF Procedures
Learn why stable hands-free ALIF retraction matters for anterior lumbar exposure, including visibility, blade control, workflow, lighting, and OR evaluation.
- by Thompson Surgical
Liver Surgery Retractor Selection: How to Maintain Stable Exposure in Complex Open Cases
Learn what surgeons should consider when choosing a liver surgery retractor for open liver resection, transplant, oncology, and complex abdominal exposure.
Retractor Sets
Maximize OR efficiency with component breakdowns and setup strategies that standardize your retractor configurations.
- by Thompson Surgical
Evaluating a Liver Transplant Retractor: Criteria for Surgeons and Value-Analysis Teams
Learn what surgeons, OR leaders, and value-analysis teams should assess when evaluating a liver transplant retractor for exposure, workflow, training, and support.
- by Thompson Surgical
Liver Transplant Retractor Design: Features That Help Preserve the Surgical Field
Learn what liver transplant retractor design features support stable exposure, including bilateral frame setup, multi-planed retraction, blade positioning, and working space
- by Thompson Surgical
Compare self-retaining and table-mounted retractors for liver transplant surgery, including exposure stability, multi-planed positioning, blade control, and OR workflow.
Rettractor Blades
Explore expert insights on Thompson Retractor blades. Learn how specialized blade positioning, radiolucent materials, and tailored designs support optimal exposure, imaging access, and OR workflows in complex surgical procedures.
Learn how independent retractor blade positioning supports changing exposure during liver transplant surgery, including blade control, bilateral setup, working space, and OR workflow.
ALIF Retractor Blades: What to Consider for Vascular, Deep, and Radiographic Access
Learn what surgeons and OR teams should consider when evaluating ALIF retractor blades for vascular exposure, deep anterior access, radiographic workflow, and illumination.
Radiolucent Retractor Blades for Cholangiograms in HPB Surgery
Explore how radiolucent HPB retractor blades support imaging access, stable retraction, and coordinated cholangiogram workflow.
Thompson Retractor News
Go behind the hardware. Stay updated on company news, OEM manufacturing, and our latest engineering principles.
- by Thompson Surgical
A retractor evaluation should answer one practical question:
Will this system work reliably for the surgeons, procedures, staff, and sterile processing workflow at this facility?
A specification sheet cannot answer that on its own. Hospitals need to see how the frame fits the operating table, how quickly the team can set it up, whether the blades maintain the intended exposure, how the components move through reprocessing, and what support is available when questions come up.
- by Thompson Surgical
Building Trust and Innovation in Surgical Retraction With Madeline Witt
Madeline Witt, Marketing Manager at Thompson Retractor was a guest on an episode of "In Good Company: Where Relationships Drive Results, with Lisa Kilrea to discuss how surgical innovation is shaped by the people using the tools.
- by Thompson Surgical
Why You Should Use Thompson Table-Mounted Retraction
Testimonials
The ability to fine tune adjustments in real time makes the procedure run smoother and safer.
— Jonathan E. Schoeff, MD, FACS
I am absolutely in love with the Thompson Retractor and the 'hands-free' surgical approach it provides."
— Alberto Gomez Portilla, MD, PhD
When someone asks for an assistant, I say, 'Pull out a Thompson!'
— Robert Mikkelsen, MD
Add customer reviews and testimonials to showcase your store’s happy customers.
— Author's name
LitePath™ Available
Now featuring LitePath™ integrated blade lighting, the retractor set delivers targeted illumination directly in the wound—enhancing visibility and eliminating the need for external light sources.