The invention is directed to a
surgical wound retractor for retracting and sealing an incision and forming a functional opening or channel through which a surgical procedure may be executed. The
wound retractor provides a path for a surgeon to insert his hand and / or instruments through the opening formed by the
wound retractor. The
wound retractor is sized and configured to be easily placed through a
small incision and removed without further insult to the
body tissue adjacent to the incision. The wound
retractor is adapted to dilate a
surgical wound incision to a desired
diameter, and comprises a first ring having a
diameter greater than the desired
diameter of the wound incision and being adapted for disposition interiorly of the wound incision; a second ring having an annular axis and a diameter greater than the desired diameter of the wound incision and being adapted for disposition exteriorly of the wound incision; and a flexible sleeve disposed in a generally cylindrical form between the first ring and the second ring, the first ring having at least one notch to facilitate folding or collapsing of the first ring during
insertion and removal of the first ring through the wound incision. The first ring may further comprise a second notch disposed on an opposing end of the first notch to further facilitate folding or collapsing of the first ring. With this aspect, the first ring is folded by squeezing between the first and second notches during
insertion and removal of the
retractor from the incision. In another aspect, the wound retractor may further comprise a tether having a length, a first end attached to the first ring interiorly of the sheath, and a second end disposed outside of the wound incision, wherein the tether facilitates removal of the first ring by pulling on the second end to retrieve the first ring through the wound incision.