A comparison of absorbable suture and argon laser welding for lateral repair of arteries

Conventional vascular anastomoses between autogenous vessels are performed with nonabsorbable sutures. Recently, use of absorbable sutures and laser-assisted vascular anastomoses has been advocated because of their improved healing characteristics. This study compared arterial repairs with the argon laser, absorbable suture, and nonabsorbable suture for technical characteristics including additional suture and overall success rates, burst strength, and cost. Absorbable and nonabsorbable suture closures were comparable with respect to technique, but laser-assisted vascular anastomosis was technically more demanding and required almost twice as much time for completion. The argon laser successfully closed only 58.6% of the arteriotomies, and 90% of the closures required additional sutures for complete hemostasis. All sutured arteriotomies were successfully completed by use of either absorbable or nonabsorbable suture. Burst strength was similar for all groups, but was uniformly greater than 300 mm Hg for sutured repairs, whereas two of five laser-assisted closures burst below 300 mm Hg. Finally, costs for purchasing ($35,000) and operating ($300/hr.) an argon laser make laser-assisted vascular anastomosis much more expensive than sutured repair. These data suggest argon laser-assisted vascular anastomoses are more technically demanding, less successful, and more expensive than conventional sutured anastomoses when evaluated in large caliber arteries in a canine model. Absorbable suture, however, is comparable to conventional nonabsorbable sutured arterial repairs in expense, handling characteristics, and success rates with the added advantage of eliminating permanent foreign body in the arterial wall when it is absorbed.