Ease of suturing surgical fabrics. A quantitative evaluation

Based on the definition that suturability is the amount of force required to puncture a graft using a surgical needle, a simple testing procedure was devised, using an Instron testing machine to measure the suturability of a number of vascular graft materials. The grafts tested, in order of preference were Cooley double velour, Weavenit, Sauvage filamentous, Cooley knitted, DeBakey woven, and Cooley woven. It has been shown that the suturability of a graft is directly related to its water porosity and the size of the needle used.