Thin Wire Resector Advances Cold Snare Polypectomy

A novel cold snare features a rotatable thin Nitinol wire which provides clean, precise resection of diminutive polyps.

The Micro-Tech Endoscopy (Ann Arbor, MI, USA) LesionHunter is a thin (0.18 mm) Nitinol cold snare specifically designed for resecting sessile polyps, pedunculated polyps, and tissue from within the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. The thin cutting wire provides for a guillotine-type cut, while the loop shape assists in capturing smaller polyps. The coiled metal catheter is stiff in order to aid insertion through an extended scope position, while providing support during resection. A three-ring comfortable grip with shortened throw aids effortless cuts.

The thin wire may also reduce the risk of generating a “fly-away” specimen, thereby making it easier to find the tissue at the end of the resection, and reducing the risk of it being hidden at the back of colon folds. LesionHunter is available in oval 10 mm, 15 mm, and 20 mm widths, with all three having the same 230 cm length and 2.3 mm outer diameter.

“The LesionHunter nitinol wire is 61% thinner than traditional braided snare wires and 42% thinner than the most popular braided cold snare on the market,” said Scott Haack, global R&D director at Micro-Tech. “The thin Nitinol wire allows for multiple tissue resections while maintaining its shape along with the ability to make a clean cut through large pieces of tissue. Current dedicated cold snares and hybrid hot/cold snares can't consistently accomplish this.”

“The LesionHunter is a unique cold snare with two great features, the ability to trap the tissue regardless of how flat the lesion is, and the 'cheese cutter' capability to resect even larger lesions,” said gastroenterologist Gregory Haber, MD, of NYU Langone (NY, USA). “It has become my go-to for cold snare applications.”

Cold snares are emerging as the dominant strategy for excising diminutive polyps in the 4–10-mm range. Pedunculated polyps can also be resected using dedicated cold snare polypectomy, if the snare is large enough to reach the stalk below the polyp head. If submucosal tissue is entrapped in the snare, the captured tissue can be guillotined repeatedly to remove the polyp completely.

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