Endurance is a skill that requires considerable practice. It can cause a severe and life-threatening infection or leave a terrible scar if done incorrectly. Therefore, medical students must master suturing techniques to work effectively with needles and tissues. After all, sutures are one of the most common conditions in the emergency room. If you're a medical student looking to perfect suture technique, staple accuracy, and suture technique, here's how to get started and learn how to create quality sutures!
What Is Suturing?
A suture is a fancy way of saying stitches. This is when you use a sterilized needle and thread to stitch a severe wound together so the tissue can begin to heal and reduce the risk of infection. Sutures are used when the injury is deep and open. The suture ensures that you bring all the layers of tissue together so that the damaged wound can begin to heal. For example, if you see fat in the injury, you should switch it up. If you try to close the wound with a bandage, it will only pull the top of the tissue together, leaving the underlying tissue separate. This small space can become a breeding ground for infection. Another example of where you might need stitches: A friend of mine had a cousin who had an accident that took his finger off his hand. They are in a remote area and cannot get to the emergency room right away. So dad (a veterinarian) used a set of sutures to stitch it up. It wasn't perfect, but it kept the tissue in the detached finger from dying, and they could take him to the emergency room to have it stitched up properly. My friend's cousin still has that finger.
How Is Self-Suturing Done In Real Emergencies?
Another reason why this should be a last resort. Gripping is a skill that requires considerable practice. You can cause a life-threatening infection or poor wound healing if not done correctly. The best, and you'll leave a terrible scar on your body. When performing stitches, doctors often inject an anesthetic into the skin to be stitched so that the patient does not feel the needle piercing the skin. You probably won't be wearing this, so the stitches can be very painful.
For these reasons, sutures should only be used in an emergency when you cannot see a doctor within 12-24 hours. In most cases, if you have an open wound, do what you can to stop the bleeding and use bandages and gauze to cover as much of it as possible. Then call 911 or go to the emergency room as soon as possible. If, for some reason, you find yourself in a situation that keeps you from seeing your doctor, here's how to do it yourself.
Suturing Supplies
To suture properly and effectively, you will need a suture kit. In case of extreme discomfort, you can use regular old needles and thread (ideally sterilized with boiling water) to suture the wound. But that would be difficult and increase the risk of infection. Here's what you need at a minimum:
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Needle driver. You will use this to hold the needle through the fabric.
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Tissue clamp. You will use them to manipulate wound tissue when dressing the wound.
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Scissors. To trim excess thread.
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Needles and threads are sterilized.
The hand on medical sutures is usually curved to make stitching easier. When you stitch someone, you are putting and leaving foreign objects in their body. You want to make sure they're sterilized. You can buy sterilized sutures at most online first aid and survival stores.
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Select the appropriate device. Professionals must choose sutures (nylon, polyester, polyglycolide or other material) and right hands. The selection of proper sutures and surgical needles is paramount. It will depend on whether he wants to close the deep tissue space, less wound tensile strength, less scarring, and the application method. For practice, you should work with tailor-made suture material. You can work with curved needles and hemostatics instead of standard sewing supplies.
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Stock up on the best models. As surprising as it may seem, fruit can be the perfect base for honing your needlework skills. The three most recommended fruits are peaches, green bananas, and grapes. Peaches are recommended as they are an excellent mimic for children's skin. Green bananas regenerate skin suppleness, and gently stitching the peeled fruit skin onto a grape is a great way to practice suturing thinner skin, especially for cases involving the elderly. You can also practice on cuts of meat like chicken breasts to get a better understanding of muscle tissue stitching. Covidien's braided sutures should be tried while suturing animal muscles to become familiar with the pressure techniques required for suturing complex wounds.
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Practice with gloves on. Always wear gloves when sewing, whether at home or in medical school. The transition from gloveless to gloved seams is much more complex than expected. Using powder-free nitrile gloves is a great way to get used to getting started with gloved sewing.
Lastly, observe how a specialist sews a patient's medical suture. Examining the wound and predicting how the closure will occur is scary for beginners, but the process is much easier if you know how to hold the needle and completely suture the wound. Cleaning in front of the seam, right angles, pressure, materials and grips all play an essential role in determining the effect of the seam. You can also ask someone to monitor and modify the method if necessary.
