Abstract: The invention defines a plastics disposable, hand applied medical retractor for retracting flesh at the edges of an incision or aperture in the human or animal body. At one end the retractor has a sharply inturned hook portion on the end of which are short, sharp, triangular teeth for impaling the flesh. The retractor bows upwardly from the hook portion and back down to a pad which has an adhesive undersurface so that it can be pressed directly to the skin so as to anchor thereto to keep the pulled back flesh in the retracted position. The said bowing allows the pulled back flesh to bunch upwardly to prevent such flesh from forcing the teeth out of engagement with the flesh and also provides inherent springiness tension in the retractor when it is applied improving its performance. Instead of the pad having adhesive it may have one part touch and close fastener, the other part being previously applied to the skin by pressure sensitive adhesive.