RI-000088 The Guthrie Retractors is a surgical tool frequently used to give access to and exposure of surgical sites during a variety of medical operations. It bears the names of Swiss surgeon Fritz Langenbeck and German surgeon Carl Thiersch Parker. The blade of the Guthrie Retractors has a broad, shallow curvature. Depending on the intended purpose, it often has a handle at one end and a blade at the other. The blade may be sharp or blunt. In order to effectively pull soft tissues, muscles, and organs during surgery, the blade is angled.