Suture Materials
Category | Material | Comments |
|---|---|---|
Nonabsorbable (preferred for cutaneous repair) | ||
Monofilament | Nylon | Strong Stiff Moderately hard to work with |
Polypropylene | Poorest knot security Soft, more pliable Most difficult to work with | |
Polybutester | Somewhat elastic, so lengthens with wound edema and contracts as edema resolves | |
Braided | Polyester | Low reactivity Not preferred to monofilament for cutaneous use |
Silk | Soft, easy to work with Good knot security High tissue reactivity Typically limited to use on the mouth, lips, eyelids, and intraorally, where patient comfort is significantly better (because removal of intraoral sutures can be difficult, most clinicians use absorbable sutures in that area) | |
Absorbable (preferred for deep dermal sutures) | ||
Monofilament | Poliglecaprone 25 | Handles like nonabsorbable sutures Easily passes through tissues Low tissue reactivity Rapid absorption (1–2 weeks) |
Polydioxanone | Very strong and long lasting (absorption, 180 days) Stiffer, more difficult to handle than other absorbable sutures Lowest tissue reactivity among absorbable sutures May extrude over time | |
Natural | Gut, chromic gut | From sheep intima Weak, rapidly absorbed (1 week) Poor knot security High tissue reactivity Not preferred |
Braided | Polyglycolic acid | Easy handling Good knot security Mild reactivity Most strength gone in 1 week First absorbable suture |
Polyglactic acid | Easy handling Good knot security Mild reactivity Most strength gone in 3 weeks | |