Artery Forceps: Types, Uses and How They Differ From Hemostats

Quick answer: Artery forceps are locking, ratcheted clamping instruments used to grip and occlude blood vessels so bleeding stops while a vessel is ligated or cauterised. “Artery forceps” and “hemostat” (or haemostat) are two names for the same family of instruments. The names that actually matter are the patterns: mosquito, Crile, Kelly, Kocher and Pean, each a different size and jaw specification for a different class of vessel.

What Are Artery Forceps?

An artery forceps is a scissor-handled clamp with a ratchet lock just above the finger rings. The surgeon places the jaws across a vessel or a pedicle of tissue, squeezes the handles until the ratchet engages, and the instrument holds its grip without continuous hand pressure. That frees the surgeon’s hands for the ligature. Once the vessel is tied or sealed, the ratchet is released and the forceps removed.

The family is large because vessels vary: a mosquito forceps for a 1 mm vessel in a child’s hand and a Pean forceps for a major pedicle in abdominal surgery are the same mechanism at very different scales. Our own catalogue illustrates the core of the range: the Crile artery forceps (5.5 inch, straight) for general work and the Halsted mosquito forceps (5 inch, curved) for small vessels.

Anatomy: Jaws, Box Lock and Ratchet

Every pattern shares the same anatomy. Two ring handles drive a box lock (the hinge), which drives two jaws. The jaw profile is the identity of the instrument: the serration pattern inside the jaws decides what it grips and how much tissue damage clamping causes. The ratchet teeth between the handles lock in one, two or three clicks. A good forceps closes fully at the tips on the first click and along the whole jaw by the second or third; a worn forceps that only meets at the base will let vessels slip.

The Main Types of Artery Forceps

Halsted Mosquito Forceps

The smallest common pattern, usually 12.5 cm. Fine, narrow jaws with full-length serrations, for clamping the smallest vessels and fine tissue in pediatric, plastic, hand and ophthalmic-adjacent work. Available straight and curved; curved is more common because the curve keeps the handles clear of the operative field.

Crile Forceps

The general-purpose standard at 14 cm, with serrations running the full length of the jaw. Used across general, gynecology and orthopedic sets for medium vessels. If a set list simply says “artery forceps,” it usually means Crile pattern.

Kelly Forceps

The same 14 cm class as Crile but with serrations covering only part of the jaw (roughly the distal portion). Kelly forceps are preferred where the un-serrated part of the jaw should not crush tissue. In practice many buyers stock one of Crile or Kelly per set, not both. A detailed comparison is in our separate Kelly forceps guide.

Kocher Forceps

Heavier forceps with a 1×2 tooth at the tip (one tooth on one jaw meeting two on the other) in addition to serrations. The teeth bite and hold slippery or tough tissue: fascia, heavy pedicles, hysterectomy clamps. The trade-off is tissue trauma, so Kocher is never used on bowel or delicate vessels.

Pean and Rochester-Pean Forceps

Large, heavy forceps for major pedicles and large vessels in abdominal and gynecological surgery. Rochester-Pean is the larger American pattern, commonly 16 to 24 cm, with full serrations.

Other Patterns in the Family

Adson forceps are a longer, finer variant for deeper fields. Mixter (right-angle) forceps have a jaw bent at an angle for passing ligatures behind vessels. Satinsky and other vascular clamps are non-crushing specialist instruments for partial vessel occlusion. Bulldog clamps are spring clips for temporary occlusion of small vessels.

Comparison Table

Artery Forceps vs Hemostat: Is There a Difference?

No functional difference. Hemostat is the common American term; artery forceps is the common British and international term; haemostatic forceps is the descriptive formal name. Catalogues, tenders and set lists use them interchangeably, which causes a real procurement problem: a tender asking for “hemostats 5.5 inch” and a supplier quoting “Crile artery forceps 14 cm” are describing the same instrument, and buyers comparing quotes line by line can miss that. When writing specifications, always use the pattern name plus size plus jaw type; never the generic family name alone.

Straight or Curved?

Straight forceps are used where the vessel is on the surface and the approach is direct. Curved forceps dominate in deeper fields: the curve follows the anatomy, presents the tip to the vessel without the handles colliding with wound edges, and keeps the surgeon’s hand out of the line of sight. Most hospital sets carry a mixture, weighted to curved.

How Artery Forceps Are Used

• The vessel is isolated and the forceps applied across it, tips fully beyond the vessel.
• The ratchet is closed to the click count appropriate for the tissue; over-clamping crushes and can cut a vessel wall.
• A ligature is passed and tied below the forceps, or the vessel is cauterised or clipped.
• The forceps is released slowly while the stump is inspected before the field is closed.

Outside theatre, nurses and paramedics also use artery forceps as a general clamping and holding tool: clamping tubes and drains, holding sutures, and as a safe grip for removing foreign bodies and fish hooks in emergency departments. That utility role is why mosquito and Kelly patterns appear in almost every procedure pack and suture kit.

Choosing and Checking Artery Forceps

• Size: mosquito 12.5 cm for fine work, 14 cm (Crile / Kelly) as the standard, longer and heavier patterns for deep or major pedicles.
• Serrations: full-length for secure grip (Crile), partial for reduced crush (Kelly), toothed tip for slippery heavy tissue (Kocher).
• Jaw closure test: on the first ratchet click the tips should meet; hold the closed forceps up to the light and no gap should show along the jaw.
• Ratchet test: closed forceps should not spring open when tapped or dropped a short distance onto a tray.
• Alignment: rings should overlap evenly when closed; misaligned rings mean a twisted box lock.

Care and Common Failures

The common failure points are the box lock and the ratchet. Instruments fail when the ratchet teeth wear smooth, when the box lock loosens so the jaws scissor past each other, and when corrosion pits the jaw serrations. All three are accelerated by poor cleaning and by clamping instruments shut during sterilisation; forceps should be sterilised open or on the first ratchet click only. Failed forceps in a set are a patient safety issue, not a cosmetic one: a clamp that slips on a vessel is a bleeding event.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are artery forceps and hemostats the same thing?
Yes. They are regional names for the same family of locking clamping forceps. Order by pattern name, size and jaw.

What is the difference between Crile and Kelly forceps?
Crile jaws are serrated along their full length; Kelly jaws are serrated only on part of the jaw. Both are usually 14 cm.

Which artery forceps are smallest?
Halsted mosquito forceps, typically 12.5 cm with very fine jaws, for the smallest vessels.

Why do Kocher forceps have teeth?
The 1×2 teeth bite into tough, slippery tissue and pedicles so the clamp cannot slide off. The trade-off is more tissue trauma.

How do you test artery forceps before use?
Check that tips meet on the first ratchet click, no light gap shows along the closed jaw, and the ratchet holds when the instrument is tapped.

Buy Artery Forceps Wholesale

Vinjal Star Manufacturing produces the full artery forceps family, mosquito to Rochester-Pean, in Sialkot, Pakistan, under CE MDR 2017/745, ISO 13485:2016 and ISO 9001:2015. Start with the Crile artery forceps or the Halsted mosquito forceps, or message us on WhatsApp at +92 346 3594812 for set lists, wholesale pricing and OEM enquiries.

Sources: Hemostat, Wikipedia.