Innovative new approach to mouth prop design
Ralph Day BDS (Hons) originally qualified as a dentist. However, after gaining significant clinical experience, he decided to follow his other passion – to explore the world of medical device design which has been his career for more than thirty years.
While working on several related new product development projects, Dr Day began to progress his long-held ideas about the need to re-engineer traditional mouth prop designs. “They have proved an extremely useful tool for maintaining access to the mouth and pharynx during diagnostic and surgical procedures. However, there are a number of clinical and technical problems associated with their use. Most dental mouth props used in practice today are based on designs dating back as far as 1940.
“Although they are designed as reusable items, their outmoded manufacture makes them very difficult to decontaminate before re-sterilisation. The most commonly used reusable mouth prop is manufactured from a rubber compound which can develop an unpleasant odour after repeated sterilisation cycles. I believe such devices have no place in today’s dental surgery.
“Current product options are neither comfortable for the patient nor clinician-friendly. They are awkward for paediatric procedures and can exacerbate treatment trauma for dento-phobic adults. For all these reasons, I was determined to develop an innovative, alternative product solution.” Several years R&D and consultation with clinical and design engineering colleagues has culminated in the launch of a new, single-use sterile intraoral mouth prop, the Instrapac Manta®.
“The new mouth prop is the result of a radical rethink, designed to sweep away previous failings while also creating a unique product full of innovative clinical features that effectively address infection prevention concerns. Because it is a single-use medical device the Instrapac Manta is always clean and sterile – meaning no decontamination issues – and is totally odour free”.
Instrapac Manta is currently indicated for the following clinical applications: oral surgery; maxillofacial surgery; paediatric and adult restorative dentistry.
For more information, or to request a product sample, visit www.robinsonhealthcare.com Registered Community Design and Patents applied for.
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