Holding Strength of Suture: An Experimental Study Using Porcine Kidney

The search for the perfect suture is going on and has resulted in the introduction of many different suture types into the market. The purpose of this study is to investigate the holding strength (HS) of different sutures in the renal parenchyma in an experimental study on pig kidneys.

The HS that caused sliding of the suture was investigated in 5 adult porcine kidneys with 7 suture variants. HS-caused tearing of the kidney was investigated with 3 suture types on 5 kidneys. The third investigation, performed on 5 porcine kidneys, was a comparison between 2-0 Vicryl sutures with a Hem-o-lok clip and 2-0 V-Loc sutures with 1 knot. The Friedman test was used to compare the groups. Post hoc analysis was performed with the Wilcoxon signed ranks test (Bonferroni corrected).

For HS causing sliding of the suture, the mean HSs of the tested sutures were as follows: 2-0 Vicryl with 1 Hem-o-lok clip, 3.26 ± 0.55 N; 2-0 Vicryl with 2 Hem-o-lok clips, 4.1 ± 0.46 N; 2-0 V-Loc, 2.52 ± 0.63 N; 4-0 V-Loc, 1.62 ± 0.17 N; 0 Quill, 0.48 ± 0.16 N; 2-0 Vicryl with 1 Hem-o-lok clip (halfway), 3.62 ± 0.66 N; and 2-0 V-Loc (halfway), 1.02 ± 0.40 N. For HS causing tearing of the kidney, the mean value of 2-way 2-0 Vicryl (Hem-o-lok in the middle) was 13.28 ± 1.38 N, 2-0 2-way Vicryl (Hem-o-lok at the end) was 5.86 ± 0.75 N, and 2-way 2-0 V-Loc was 3.98 ± 1.60 N. For the third group, the difference between the 2 suture variants was not statistically significant.

Our study revealed that 2-0 Vicryl (polyglactin 910) sutures with 2 Hem-o-lok clips had the maximum HS in renal parenchyma when compared with other sutures.