Knowledge base

Suture knowledge base

A working reference on surgical suture materials — what each one is, how it behaves in tissue, and what clinicians weigh when selecting. Written for healthcare professionals and reviewed before publication.

45 articles across 8 topics

Each article states what a material is and how it behaves, and points to the instructions for use for the figures that belong there — indications, absorption periods and strength retention are product-specific and the IFU is the controlled document. Nothing here is medical advice or a recommendation for a procedure or a patient.

Suture basics

What a surgical suture is, the vocabulary, and how the material families differ.

Start here What Is a Surgical Suture? What a surgical suture is, the axes on which suture materials vary, and the vocabulary needed to read any suture specification. How to Read a Suture Pack Label What every field on a suture pack means — gauge, strand length, needle code and curvature, lot and reference numbers, sterilisation symbol and use-by date — and which of them identify the product uniquely. Monofilament vs Braided Sutures: What Construction Changes The one structural difference between a monofilament and a braided suture — the spaces between filaments — and everything that follows from it: capillarity, why braids are coated, handling, and why neither is the better construction. Suture Sizes Why a 6-0 suture is thinner than a 2, how the USP and metric scales relate, and the full size chart for collagen and synthetic sutures. Suture Strength: Knot-Pull, Straight-Pull and Needle Attachment The three mechanical requirements USP sets for a surgical suture — the strand's breaking force with a knot and without one, and the force holding the needle to the strand — and what a floor at every size actually gives the person ordering. Types of Sutures How suture materials are classified — by absorption, construction, origin, coating and size — and what each material family is made of. Suture Sterilisation and Packaging How surgical sutures are sterilised, why ethylene oxide and gamma irradiation are not interchangeable, what the sterile barrier system does, and what an expiry date on a suture pack actually means. Which Suture for Which Tissue How long the closure must hold, what the tissue tolerates and whether the strand has to come out — the three questions behind suture selection, worked through tissue by tissue in material families rather than product names. How and When Sutures Are Removed Which sutures are removed and which are left, what decides the timing — site, tension and healing — and why the date belongs to the treating team.

Absorbable sutures

Materials absorbed by the body — the synthetics and catgut, and how each is broken down.

Start here What are Absorbable Sutures? What absorbable suture materials are made of, the difference between hydrolytic and enzymatic breakdown, and why strength loss and mass loss are two separate timelines. Catgut Sutures Catgut is purified collagen, and the only suture material in general use that the body breaks down with enzymes rather than water — which is what makes it different from every synthetic absorbable. Fast-Absorbing Polyglactin 910 Sutures Fast-absorbing polyglactin 910 is the same copolymer as the standard form. What differs is the profile over which the strand supports tissue, and where that figure is documented. Plain vs chromic catgut: what chromicisation changes Plain and chromic catgut are the same purified collagen strand, separated by one process step. What chromicisation is, what it changes, and what it leaves untouched. Poliglecaprone (PGCL) Sutures What poliglecaprone suture is made of, why the caprolactone fraction and the monofilament construction go together, and where the figures actually live. Polydioxanone (PDS) Sutures What polydioxanone suture is made of, why the ether oxygen in its backbone makes it the odd one out among the synthetic absorbables, and what its chemistry means for how it is made. Polyglactin 910 (PGLA) Sutures What polyglactin 910 suture is made of, why the lactide fraction makes it a different material from PGA, and what the coating is doing. Polyglycolic Acid (PGA) Sutures What polyglycolic acid suture is, how it behaves in tissue, and what clinicians weigh when selecting a synthetic absorbable braid. What are dissolvable sutures? The questions people actually ask about dissolvable sutures — what "dissolving" means, why nobody will quote you a single number, and where the real answer lives. How Long Do Dissolvable Stitches Take to Dissolve? Why an absorbable suture runs on two different clocks — the loss of strength and the disappearance of the material — what changes the timing, and when stitches are removed instead.

Non-absorbable sutures

Materials that stay until removed or remain permanently, from polypropylene to steel.

Start here Non-Absorbable (Non-Dissolvable) Sutures What makes a suture non-absorbable, the material families in the class, and the construction axis — monofilament against multifilament — that runs through all of them. Polyamide (Nylon) Sutures What polyamide suture is, how nylon is polymerised from caprolactam, and why a material classed non-absorbable nevertheless hydrolyses slowly in tissue. Polyester (PET) Sutures What polyester suture is, why "polyester" in practice means polyethylene terephthalate, and why a braided non-absorbable strand is coated. Polypropylene Sutures What polypropylene suture is made of, why it is extruded as a monofilament, and what clinicians weigh when selecting a synthetic non-absorbable polyolefin. PTFE Sutures What PTFE suture is made of, why a fully fluorinated backbone is described as inert, and what clinicians weigh when selecting a non-absorbable fluoropolymer monofilament. Silk Sutures What surgical silk is, how degumming turns a raw natural filament into a braided strand, and why a material classed non-absorbable loses strength in tissue over time. Stainless Steel Sutures What stainless steel suture is, what the 316L alloy designation means, and why a metallic strand behaves unlike every polymer in the non-absorbable class. UHMWPE Sutures What UHMWPE suture is, why "ultra-high-molecular-weight" describes chain length rather than a different chemistry, and why the strand is a braided blend rather than a single polymer.

Specialty & coated sutures

Barbed strands, antibacterial coatings and the constructions built for a specific job.

Start here Barbed Sutures What a barbed suture is, how the barbs anchor a strand mechanically without a knot, and how unidirectional and bidirectional configurations differ. Antibacterial Coatings for Sutures What an antibacterial suture coating is, which agents are used as surface coatings, what the WHO guidelines say about triclosan-coated sutures and surgical site infection, and how a coating sits alongside the regular coating on a braided strand.

Suture needles

The needle is half the device — its point, its curvature, its alloy and how it is joined to the strand.

Start here Suture Needles The needle is half the device. What a swaged needle is, the alloys it is made from, and the point and curvature choices that are matched to tissue rather than to the strand. 300 Series Needles Why suture needles are made from two different stainless steel families, what austenitic and martensitic mean in practice, and the point geometries offered in the 300 series. Needle Points: Taper, Cutting, Reverse Cutting and Blunt The four needle point geometries in detail — round points that spread tissue, triangular points that cut it, and why the position of the cutting edge on the needle's curve is the whole difference between cutting and reverse cutting. Suture Needle Curvature Why needle curvature is expressed as a fraction of a circle, how chord length and radius differ from needle length, and what the geometry describes about access.

Knots & technique

What a knot is doing, what knotless means, and the properties a closure is judged on. Not instruction — the technique is the surgeon's.

Start here What Makes a Surgical Knot Hold What knot security names as a property, why the suture's surface and construction affect how a knot seats, and why technique belongs to the surgeon rather than to a reference page. Interrupted and Continuous Suturing What distinguishes an interrupted closure from a continuous one in mechanical terms, and why the choice between them belongs to the operating surgeon rather than to a reference page. Knotless Closure and How Barbed Sutures Anchor How a barbed suture holds tissue without a tied knot, why barb direction determines whether a strand needs a loop or opposes itself, and what the construction does and does not change.

Surgical mesh

Knitted and composite meshes for soft-tissue reinforcement — construction, pore, weight and fixation.

Start here Surgical Mesh What a surgical mesh is, how a knitted mesh differs from a composite one, what semi-absorbable means, and why a mesh has two different sides. Mesh Construction — Knitted, Composite and Dual-Sided How a surgical mesh is built — knitted monofilament, semi-absorbable and dual-sided composite constructions, what a preformed 3D mesh is, and why the two faces of a composite are not interchangeable. Mesh Fixation — Tackers, Sutures and Adhesives The three families of mesh fixation, what a tacker is and how absorbable and permanent tacks differ, and why fixation is a decision separate from the choice of mesh. Mesh Pore Size and Weight What pore size and areal density actually describe, why lightweight and heavyweight are relative terms rather than categories, and how the two properties are related through the knit. Hernia Types and Mesh Selection The common hernia types, how the repair approach and the anatomical plane the mesh occupies drive which mesh properties matter, and where pore size, construction and fixation fit in.

Clips, staplers & closure devices

Closure and ligation that does not use a suture — staples, clips and tackers, and what each is made of.

Start here Surgical Hemostats What a surgical hemostat is, how absorbable oxidised regenerated cellulose and non-absorbable bone wax differ in mechanism and fate, and where each sits alongside sutures and clips. Ligation Clips — Polymer and Titanium What a ligation clip is, how polymer and titanium clips differ in material and closure mechanism, and why imaging behaviour is a material property rather than a safety statement. Skin Staples, Staplers and Removers How a skin stapler forms a staple, what distinguishes single-use from reusable and reloadable instruments, and why removal requires its own dedicated tool. Sutures vs Staples vs Tissue Adhesive How surgeons choose between sutures, staples, tissue adhesive and closure strips — the tension, depth and site behind the decision, and why closure is usually layered.