[About history of surgeons hidden behind our daily surgical instruments: Retractors]

Many surgical instruments are named after their inventors, acclaimed surgeons of the past, because of their discoveries and their contributions in the field of surgical techniques. However, these daily reminders of History of Surgery are often forgotten by the modern practitioners. We propose to review, through a selection of instruments, short biographies of these precursors. This second original article will focus on the inventors of modern retractors: von Langenbeck, Farabeuf, Leriche, Gillies and Tessier.