At Starion, patient welfare is a primary concern, the following is a list of questions and answer to help you understand your surgery and the options available to you.  If you have any additional questions please contact us.

Q: What do Starion products do?
A: All of Starion’s devices perform an essential part of surgery, coagulating vessels and dividing soft tissue.  However, Starion performs sealing and dividing through the application of direct heat and pressure.

Q: What is Tissue Welding?
A: Tissue Welding is a term Starion uses to describe its unique approach to sealing and dividing tissue.  Starion's instruments do not use radio or ultrasonic frequencies that may cause unintended trauma to surrounding tissue.  Starion devices are also easy for physicians to operate, thus potentially shortening the overall procedure time, which can have added patient benefits. Please click here to have a demonstration. 

Q: How does Tissue Welding work?
A: Starion’s technology confines heat to the jaws of the device along a temperature gradient that both coagulates and cuts tissue simultaneously.  Direct thermal energy (heat) – not an intermediary – and pressure is applied to denature then bond protein-based tissue structures. The heating element is powered by a low voltage direct current (DC) power supply. The heating element is combined with an insulated backing, which isolates the heat to a narrow profile.

Q: What are the advantages of Tissue Welding?
A: Starion’s devices have advantages in terms of minimizing thermal spread and the complexity of the entire surgical system.  Extensive studies have shown that because the damage to surrounding tissues is minimized with Starion’s instruments, patients tend to experience less pain, lower swelling and shorter recovery times.

Cardiac Surgery:

Q: What is CABG?
A: Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG) surgery or simply bypass surgery is a procedure performed to reduce the risks from coronary artery disease. Arteries or veins from elsewhere in the patient's body are grafted from the aorta to the coronary arteries, creating new routes around narrowed and blocked arteries, allowing sufficient blood flow to deliver oxygen and nutrients to the heart muscle.

Q: What is vessel harvesting?
A: In order to perform a CABG, vessels must be taken from another part of the body. Typically, one or more of the following three vessels is used for CABGs:

• Internal Mammary Artery

• Commonly used due to its proximity to the heart and its resistance to plaque buildup

• Saphenous Vein

• Located in the leg and is a remarkably strong vessel

• Radial Artery

• Advances in devices and harvesting techniques have led to increased use of the radial artery, located in the forearm, as conduit for bypass surgery

Q: How are the vessels harvested?
A: There are three main ways surgeons harvest vessels for CABGs:

• Open – incision is made and vessel is removed.  This procedure is associated with pain and longer recovery.
• Bridging – a series of smaller incisions are made to remove the vessel.
• Endoscopic – one or two very small incisions are made and the vessel is removed. This technique has been shown to lower complications and shorten recovery times.

Q: Why use a Starion device for CABG?
A: Regardless of technique, Starion's instruments help surgeons perform these delicate procedures with greater confidence. Surgeons know that Starion devices minimize thermal spread and can be used close to vital structures. As a result, Starion devices helps to reduce any associated complications, infections or numbness in the limbs as demonstrated in many clinical studies.

ENT:

Q: What is a tonsillectomy?
A: The tonsils are areas of lymphoid tissue on either side of the throat. Tonsillectomy is the surgical procedure to remove the tonsils. It is one of the most common surgical procedures. Despite its frequency, complications may arise, mostly bleeding and pain after the surgery.

Q: When is a tonsillectomy needed?
A: Tonsillectomy may be required when a patient:

• Experiences frequent tonsillitis
• Has chronic tonsillitis, consisting of persistent throat pain
• Has multiple bouts of peritonsillar abscess, a complication of tonsillitis
• Has sleep apnea (obstructing or stopping breathing at night due to enlarged tonsils)
• Difficulty eating or swallowing due to enlarged tonsils

Q: Why a Starion tonsillectomy?
A: Extensively used, published studies indicate that the Starion ENTceps provide an effective removal of the tonsils with:

• Reduced surgical times
• Lower pain after surgery
• Quicker recovery times
• Fewer complications after surgery

We have provided numerous studies and patient testimonials to review.

General Surgical Procedures

Q: For what other procedures are Starion devices used?
A: Because Starion has customized its design over the years, including devices for both open and laparoscopic procedures, Starion supports a broad spectrum of general surgical procedures including:

• Appendectomy
• Axillary Node Dissection
• Bariatric surgery
• Cholecystectomy
• Colectomy
• Hemorrhoidectomy
• Hysterectomy
• Mastectomy
• Nephrectomy
• Nissen Fundoplication
• Prostatectomy
• Splenectomy

Q: What are the benefits?
A: At Starion, we develop instruments designed to take away some of the worries about surgery and help patients return to a normal routine as soon as possible.  In all sorts of surgical procedures, surgeons have found that Starion's instruments help them to expedite procedure times, reduce blood loss, reduce hospital stays, complications and shorten recovery times.