Endodontic surgery tissue retractor device

1 . An endodontic tissue retractor, comprising:

a bite pad having a proximal end and a distal end;

a tooth registration block connected to the distal end of the bite pad;

an arm having a proximal end and distal end, wherein the proximal end is connected to the tooth registration block such that the tooth registration block is between the bite pad and the arm;

a cheek retractor having a proximal end, a distal end and a length, the length defining a top edge and a bottom edge, wherein the distal end of the cheek retractor is connected to the distal end of the arm; and

at least one cheek catch extending from the top edge of the cheek retractor, wherein the bite pad, arm and cheek retractor have a flat profile in the same plane when unbent and the tooth registration block protrudes outwardly from the plane of the bite pad, arm and cheek retractor.

2 . The tissue retractor of claim 1 , further comprising a jawbone registration element connected to the distal end of the cheek retractor.

3 . The tissue retractor of claim 2 , wherein the jawbone registration element is rigid and pointed and is configured to engage gum, teeth, or jawbone tissue of a subject.

4 . The tissue retractor of claim 1 , wherein the bite pad, arm, cheek retractor and at least one cheek catch are bendable and shape-holding.

5 . The tissue retractor of claim 1 , wherein the arm has a shoulder region at the proximal end, such that the width of the arm decreases distally across the shoulder region.

6 . The tissue retractor of claim 5 , wherein the proximal end of the cheek retractor is adjacent but not in contact with the proximal shoulder region of the arm.

7 . The tissue retractor of claim 5 , wherein the cheek retractor is adjacent to the arm and extends proximally toward the shoulder region of the arm, thereby forming a gap region between the arm and the cheek retractor.

8 . The tissue retractor of claim 7 , wherein only the distal end of the cheek retractor is connected to the distal end of the arm.

9 . The tissue retractor of claim 1 , wherein the at least one cheek catch extends in the same plane as the cheek retractor when unbent.

10 . The tissue retractor of claim 1 , wherein the bite pad, tooth registration block, arm and cheek retractor are a single unit.

11 . The tissue retractor of claim 1 , wherein the bite pad comprises a metal core encapsulated by an exterior shell.

12 . The tissue retractor of claim 11 , wherein the bite pad comprises at least one frangible tab at the proximal end of the bite pad.

13 . The tissue retractor of claim 12 , wherein the at least one frangible tab comprises a region of reduced thickness of the exterior shell.

14 . The tissue retractor of claim 13 , wherein the metal core includes a breaking region off-set from the exterior shell region of reduced thickness.

15 . The tissue retractor of claim 13 , wherein the region of reduced thickness is between 30% and 50% of the thickness of the bite pad.

16 . A tissue retractor, comprising:

a bite pad;

a cheek retractor;

an arm between the bite pad and the cheek retractor; and

a tooth registration block between the bite pad and the arm, wherein the bite pad, cheek retractor and arm are bendable and shape-holding, wherein the bite pad comprises a metal core encapsulated by an exterior shell, and wherein the bite pad comprises at least one frangible tab.

17 . The tissue retractor of claim 16 , wherein the at least one frangible tab comprises a region of reduced thickness of the exterior shell.

18 . The tissue retractor of claim 17 , wherein the metal core includes a breaking region off-set from the exterior shell region of reduced thickness.

19 . The tissue retractor of claim 16 , further comprising a jawbone registration element connected to the cheek retractor.

20 . The tissue retractor of claim 16 , further comprising at least one cheek catch extending from the cheek retractor.