Slipknot suture can help surgeons improve wound closure

Editor's Note

Researchers have created surgical suture to help surgeons find just the right balance in tying a knot that is tight enough to heal a wound but not so tight that tissue is damaged, according to a November 26 news article in Nature.

The surgical suture technology was described by its creators, who calculated how to precisely control a knot’s geometry and friction so that they could program it to open when tugged on with a specific force. The programmable suture they created includes these calculated slipknots. Using the tension in the slipknot as a gage, any surgeon—especially a less experienced surgeon or a robot—can use this suture for a wound closure to pull it closed with just the right amount of force to stop when the knot unfurls.

The investigators tested this slipknot suture in simulated colon surgeries on rats and found that it allowed a faster rate of blood flow to be restored at the surgical site, while also creating fewer leaks and less scar tissue compared to conventional stitches. Training and years of experience for the surgeon is typically required to gauge how much tension is in stitches by look and feel, and this skill remains variable even in experts, per the news story.