Innovative Fabrication of Monofilament Sutures with High Strength, Resilience, and Ultratoughness for Enhanced Wound...

Conventional monofilament sutures often exhibit limited mechanical performance, such as insufficient flexibility and ligation strength, which can lead to tissue cutting or damage during surgical procedures. To address these limitations, the fabrication of polyurethane monofilament sutures by combining multiblock polymers (polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)/polycaprolactone (PCL)) and a hierarchical hydrogen-bonding network is reported. Hierarchical hydrogen bonds and microphase separation in the material together form dynamic hard-phase microdomains, which act as rigid nanofillers that deform and reorganize under external forces. Consequently, the suture demonstrates outstanding mechanical properties, including a true stress of 393 MPa, an elongation at break of 610%, and an ultrahigh toughness of 941 MJ m^-3, surpassing commercial nylon, silk, and other reported suture materials. Furthermore, cytotoxicity tests and mouse tests confirm excellent biocompatibility and effective wound healing. Overall, this polyurethane suture overcomes the key mechanical limitations of traditional monofilament sutures and shows strong potential for surgical applications.