Abstract: An electrosurgical instrument including an active electrode surface made of a conducting ceramic or cermet. The conducting ceramic may be a carbide, boride, or nitride ceramic or a mixture of these ceramics. The cermet may include a ceramic and a metal selected from the group consisting of Cobalt, Nickel, Iron, Tungsten, Molybdenum, Titanium, Zirconium, and Aluminum. The conducting ceramic or cermet active electrode surface may be supported on a core. In some embodiments, the core is a metal core with the active electrode surface formed as a coating on a surface of the metal core. In other embodiments, the core is made of electrically insulating material. Some embodiments of the invention are Bovie blades, bipolar forceps, cauterizing end effectors for endoscopic surgery, bipolar biopsy devices, and spatula blades having the inventive active electrode surface.

Abstract: A medical interventional instrument for use in a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or other imaging system, a method for designing such an instrument, and a method including the steps of positioning an instrument having a body with a contrast region (constructed in accordance with the invention) and a target in the imaging region of an imaging system and operating the imaging system to produce an image showing both the target and the contrast agent. The instrument has a carbon-fiber or glass-fiber composite (or zirconia) body which preferably carries a contrast agent which is appropriate to the particular imaging modality to be used with the instrument. The concentration and volume of the contrast agent are determined (preferably experimentally) to cause the instrument to be positively shown in an image produced by the imaging system, without obscuring or distorting unacceptably the image of the target (e.g., a typical target, such as human tissue) with which the contrast agent is to be imaged.

Abstract: A coated instrument for use in a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system, a method for designing such an instrument, and an MRI method including the steps of positioning a coated instrument (constructed in accordance with the invention) and a target in the imaging region of an MRI system, and operating the MRI system to produce an image showing both the target and the instrument. The instrument has a non-electrically conductive body covered by an electrically conductive, ultra-thin coating on at least part of the body. The thickness of the coating is determined (preferably experimentally) to be just large enough to cause the instrument to be positively shown in an MR image produced by the MRI system, but not so large as to obscure or distort unacceptably the image of a target (e.g., a typical target, such as human tissue, with which the instrument is to be imaged) in the same MR image (where both the instrument and target are in the MRI system's imaging region when the MRI system produces the MR image).