immediate vicinity of hole 132 has been evacuated wicking action of mat 122 causes fluid to flow from surrounding areas of mat 122 toward a section where wand 124 is embedded in mat 122 therefore fluid can be evacuated without wand 126 being in direct contact with pooling fluid to evacuate it also mat 122 acts as a buffer for the suction force emanating from wand 124 direct suction even though very low power can seriously damage very delicate nerves and vessels typically exposed during microsurgery if those tissues come in contact with direct suction furthermore small cannulas typically used for suction often plug with tissue and stop functioning mat 122 acts as a filter to prevent such tissue from entering wand 124 thereby preventing blockage of wand 124 or tube 126 one swabber 120 can eliminate the need for dozens of cotton tipped applicators or similar devices typically used to swab fields during microsurgery it also reduces the time needed to swab a field since swabber 120 is held in place until the field is sufficiently clear of fluid compared to repeatedly applying removing and changing cotton tipped applicators fig1 shows an alternative embodiment of the swabber 150 with a wand or shaft 151 having a wicking tip 152 connected at its distal tip and a hand operable elastomeric suction bulb 153 connected at its proximal tip the bulb 153 creates suction and serves as a reservoir for removed liquids a stem 154 extends a predetermined length into the.