Wound Closure with Transcutaneous Absorbable Polyglactin Sutures after Hidradenitis Suppurativa Excision
Carolyn Drogt1, Philip Hanwright, Michael Ha
1At the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America, Carolyn Drogt, MHS, is Medical Student, Division of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery; Philip Hanwright, MD, is Plastic Surgery Resident, Department of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery; Michael Ha, MA Cantab MB BChirc, is Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Division of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery; Ledibabari M. Ngaage, MA Cantab MB BChirc, is Plastic Surgery Intern, Department of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery; and Mary Lin, BS, Shealinna Ge, MD, Yinglun Wu, MD, Ronald P. Silverman, MD, and Yvonne M. Rasko, MD, are Medical Students, Division of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery. The authors have disclosed no financial relationships related to this article. Submitted February 4, 2021; accepted in revised form April 12, 2021.
Objective:
Wide surgical excision is the standard treatment for severe hidradenitis suppurativa (HS). Because of the nature of HS, these wounds are often nonsterile, located in moist intertriginous regions, and closed under tension, increasing the risk for surgical site complications. Although uncommon, absorbable sutures may confer benefits over nonabsorbable material for skin closure. Accordingly, the authors evaluated the use of absorbable, braided, transcutaneous polyglactin sutures after wide surgical excision of HS.
Methods:
The authors performed a retrospective chart review for all consecutive patients who underwent wide surgical excision of HS at a tertiary university hospital between January 2009 and March 2020.
Results:
Sixty consecutive patients with 174 operative sites were included in the study. The surgical site complication rate was 17.8%. Postoperative complications included wound dehiscence (n = 18), surgical site infection (n = 2), and scar contracture (n = 1). Sutures were removed from 12 (6.9%) operative sites. Factors influencing complications were Hurley grade and area of excision. Complications did not differ significantly among disease locations (P = .6417).
Conclusions:
The results support the growing evidence that absorbable sutures are an appropriate option after wide surgical excision of HS.
