Can emergency department patients safely remove their own sutures at home?

Annually, approximately 7 to 9 million lacerations are treated in emergency departments (ED) in the United States [1]. While it has been found that patients tend to prefer absorbable sutures, some individuals have tissue reaction to subcutaneous polyglactin [2]. For each injury that requires closure, patients treated with nonabsorbable sutures are generally referred to their medical care provider to have those sutures removed. For patients who are uninsured, unable to access an urgent care facility or lacking a primary care provider, the medical care to remove sutures often occurs in the same ED where the laceration repair originally occurred.

Source: The American Journal of Emergency Medicine - October 13, 2020 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: Allison Brown, Nadia Nikroo, Samir Yassin, Kyle Beasley, Noelle Kraus, Justin Houseman, Jeffrey Jones Source Type: research