The "round block" purse-string suture: a simple method to close skin defects with minimal scarring

Abstract

We report the use of a subcuticular purse-string suture for closure of surgical skin defects, a simple maneuver that we have found to be very useful in closing difficult wounds and reducing scarring. The purse-string suture is performed with a large nonabsorbable suture that is passed intradermally and left in situ at least 4 weeks. This technique has been applied in 196 patients for a total of 221 sutures over a period of 2 years, being used to close skin defects from 2 x 2 to 8 x 11 cm in many areas of the body. All the patients showed, at closure, a large number of concentric redundant folds as well as considerable distortion of nearby structures; both improved impressively over a period of 2 to 3 weeks and became nearly normal at the time of suture removal (4 to 8.2 weeks, mean 5.7 weeks). The initially very limited and almost circular scar oriented itself along the skin tension lines over a period of a few weeks and, when matured, was always shorter than the original defect. In general, minimal scar widening occurred when we used larger sutures (more than 0-1) that were left longer (more than 6 weeks). Complications have been 23 cases of dehiscence (10.4 percent) in 23 patients (between the fifth and sixteenth days, mean 6.7 days); they were caused by the bad quality of the skin and by the use of too small sutures that cut through the dermis. The "round block" suture has many advantages: 1. It is a simple, inexpensive, and rapid technique for closing wounds by expanding the surrounding skin and often avoiding the use of skin grafts and/or local flaps. 2. It can minimize scarring; the final scars are shorter than the original defect and usually of very good quality. 3. It allows a very useful temporary closure that stretches the surrounding skin while waiting for the definitive histologic report. If this method is not chosen as a definitive closure, later repair with local flaps may be facilitated. 4. For the reasons expressed above, it never compromises the final result even in cases of dehiscence. The main disadvantage is the acceptability of the method on the part of patients, who need to be carefully prepared for both the gross initial distortion and the long time the suture has to be retained; nevertheless, patient satisfaction with the final results in generally very high, especially in large excisions of the face.