title: Superficial wound closure complications with barbed sutures following knee arthroplasty.
abstract: As quality measures may be increasingly used in knee surgery reimbursement, an important focus in outcome assessment will shift toward minimizing complications and increasing efficiency in knee arthroplasty reconstruction. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of barbed, absorbable sutures in closure of the longitudinal surgical incision following knee arthroplasty, using post-operative complication occurrences. In 416 operations, primary outcomes assessed were deep infection, superficial infection, dehiscence, or stitch abscesses. Secondary outcomes included self-limiting eschar, severe effusion, arthrofibrosis, and keloid formation. Evaluation of overall primary outcomes showed a higher rate of wound complications using barbed sutures (P < 0.001). With increased rates of infection and overall closure related complications, this study shows that barbed suture use for superficial closure after knee arthroplasty should be avoided.
authors.affiliation: Center for Hip and Knee Replacement, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York.
authors.forename: Abigail L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Campbell
authors.affiliation: Center for Hip and Knee Replacement, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York.
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Patrick
authors.affiliation: Center for Hip and Knee Replacement, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York.
authors.forename: Barthelemy
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Liabaud
authors.affiliation: Center for Hip and Knee Replacement, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York. Electronic address: JGeller@columbia.edu.
authors.forename: Jeffrey A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Geller
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D019645:Arthroplasty, Replacement, Knee / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013529:Surgical Wound Dehiscence / Q000209:etiology; D013530:Surgical Wound Infection / Q000209:etiology; D013536:Suture Techniques; D013537:Sutures / Q000009:adverse effects*; D014945:Wound Healing; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: complications; knee arthroplasty; outcomes; sutures; wound closures