What if a stitch comes through the skin?

In most surgeries there are sutures under the skin that provide support and reapproximate or reshaping areas that weren’t originally together.

Some of those sutures are permanent and some are dissolvable. When they are dissolvable, they all have varying lengths of time for which they are present and maintain tension. We pick sutures based on the needs of that particular operation.

When an underlying suture comes through its called a ‘spitting suture’. If that occurs it’s best to make an appointment with your physician. It’s not an absolute emergency, unless you think there’s a infection or if the wound is coming apart.  It’s also best not to clip or tug on it because the suture might or might not be important anymore.

Tell me about these ‘dissolvable’ and ‘permanent’ sutures?

If it’s a dissolvable suture and has been in place for an appropriate amount of time, your surgeon might remove it.

If a permanent suture, your surgeon might still remove it because it’s been exposed to a non-sterile environment.

In that case, your surgeon might or might not choose to place new supportive sutures. It depends on the location and procedure.

In conclusion: It depends!

The short answer is that it depends on the time after surgery and the type of surgery performed.  I hope that helps, but if you have any other questions, email our team at info@drundavia.com