How long does it take for a suture to heal after abdominal surgery?

Any surgical operation is caused by a violation of the integrity of the skin and is completed by suturing. There are many factors that influence the healing time of postoperative sutures and the formation of scar tissue at the surgical site. Let's figure out what the healing time of sutures is and what factors influence it.

Average healing time for surgical sutures

Postoperative wounds heal a week (+-2 days) after the operation. This is how much time passes after surgery before removing sutures made from non-self-absorbable materials. However, it should be noted that the healing time of the sutures depends on the part of the body where the integrity of the skin was damaged.

Average healing time depending on

from the operated area of ​​the body

Surgery to remove the appendix. The sutures are tightened on the sixth day after surgery
- laparoscopic surgery. Sutures heal on the seventh day
- extensive abdominal operations. The maximum healing period for sutures when applied correctly is 12 days.
- operations of the sternum region. The seams last quite a long time - up to two weeks.
- surgical interventions on the knees. Stitches are removed on the fifth day
- wounds after amputation usually heal on the 13th day

But you need to know that even after the stitches dissolve and heal, the wounds will heal with connective tissue only a couple of months after the operation.

When the sutures heal also depends on the method of their application. Seams can be multi-row or single-row. The first ones heal somewhat more difficult and, accordingly, take longer (from 7 to 10 days). And single-row ones can be painlessly removed five days after the operation.

Additional factors

We must not forget that the speed of healing of sutures after abdominal surgery also depends on the age of the patient. The younger he is, the faster and more successful both the rehabilitation period in general and the healing of sutures in particular will be. The amount of fat in the patient’s body also plays a significant role in the healing time of postoperative sutures. Simply put, if the patient’s weight significantly exceeds normal values, then the stitches will take longer than average, and suppuration is possible.

Doctors also say that after abdominal surgery, the patient should under no circumstances be allowed to become dehydrated. Otherwise, there is a high probability that the sutures will take too long to heal.

Surgical suture - course and complications

Often, after surgery with a violation of the integrity of the skin, surgeons resort to applying a surgical suture. There are countless varieties of these sutures and there is even an expression: as many surgeons as there are, so many sutures, since each surgeon applies a suture, albeit according to the generally accepted method, but still adapting the technique to suit himself and the characteristics of the patient.

How to apply sutures after surgery

The main thing after the operation is that the suture does not fester. To do this, you will be treated for several days while you are in the hospital. Usually the following method is used for this: soak the previous dressing (if it has dried) with hydrogen peroxide, then lubricate it with alcohol, then with brilliant green or iodine. If the surgeon does not see signs of inflammation of the wound or its suppuration, then on the 3-4th day, after the next alcohol-green treatment, he may not apply a bandage at all. Before discharge, you should be told how to take care of the scar at home and what to apply to it.

The seam is festering

If a postoperative suture festers, this indicates one thing - there is an infection in the wound, and not an unspecified one, but a bacterial one. This means that you need to treat it with antibiotics, and not yourself, but with the help of the surgeon who performed the operation.

Factors predisposing to wound infection:

1) The operation was carried out on the organs of the genitourinary system, intestines, oropharynx, and on the gall bladder, with the integrity of these organs being violated (that is, their non-sterile contents got into the wound);

How to remove stitches

Surgical sutures are the most common way to connect biological tissues (wound edges, organ walls, etc.), stop bleeding, bile leakage, etc. using suture material. Skin sutures are most often removed 6-9 days after their application, however, the timing of removal may vary depending on the location and nature of the wound.

After laparotomy: recovery period

Any medical intervention in the life of every person brings anxiety to one degree or another. It is especially difficult to survive an operation, even a small one. The operation itself and recovery after it require a lot of mental strength. Let's take a look at some of the features of recovery after laparotomy.

Upper median laparotomy

Upper median laparotomy is one of the options for surgical access to the abdominal organs during surgical interventions. Its essence lies in making an incision in the abdominal tissue (anterior abdominal wall) in the longitudinal direction along the midline. The peculiarity of the upper median laparotomy is that the dissection is made from the angle of the costal arches with the xiphoid process under the sternum to the navel.

Any surgical intervention that violates the integrity of the body’s skin ends with the application of postoperative sutures. Many factors influence how long it takes for sutures to heal and whether scar tissue forms in this area. Let's find out how long it takes for sutures to heal and what it depends on.

How long do stitches take to heal: approximate time frame

The postoperative wound heals 7-9 days after surgery. It is after this period of days that the sutures are removed if they were made with non-absorbable materials. At the same time, for surgery on a certain area of ​​the body, the following average healing times can be distinguished:

• after laparoscopy or removal of appendicitis, the sutures heal within 6-7 days;
• after extensive abdominal surgery, wound healing may take up to 12 days;
• Wounds take a long time to heal even after operations in the sternum - up to 14 days;
• sutures from meniscus surgery can be removed on the 5th day;
• head wounds heal on the 6th day;
• post-amputation wounds heal on the 12th day.

However, it is worth keeping in mind that the connective tissue, which is responsible for the strength of wound healing, grows in 2-3 months.

Influencing factors

In the absence of any complications after surgery, concomitant pathologies and complicating factors described below, postoperative sutures are quickly tightened. How long do stitches take to heal? The patient can be discharged home within 5-7 days after surgery. For approximately 6 months after surgery, he is still not allowed to lift weights or do heavy work. Let's take a closer look at what determines the speed of healing of sutures.

• Patient's age: the younger the person, the faster the processes of tissue fusion and scar formation occur.
• The patient's weight and the presence of subcutaneous fat deposits affect the healing process of sutures. In people suffering from obesity, healing of postoperative sutures takes longer and usually with complications.
• The patient's diet has an impact - after all, the more varied a person eats after surgery, the faster the wounds heal.
• Water depletion of the body (dehydration) provokes the appearance of an imbalance of electrolytes. This leads to disturbances in the functioning of the kidneys and heart. The tissues are not saturated with oxygen in sufficient quantities, and as a result, the healing process is inhibited.
• The speed of healing of sutures also depends on the type of blood supply in the surgical area. Therefore, for example, wounds on the face heal faster.
• The state of the patient's immunity directly affects the rate of wound healing. In patients with HIV status or immunodeficiency, the healing process is sometimes very delayed, so they need to treat the postoperative wound much more often.
• One of the factors is the presence of chronic or endocrine diseases. For example, diabetes mellitus greatly complicates the healing of sutures.
• The healing of sutures is affected by pathogenic organisms or suppuration in the wound. The healing process of sutures is also slowed down due to secondary infection of postoperative wounds.
• The healing time clearly depends on the size of the wound. The larger its area, the longer the healing process takes place.

Suture material and suturing methods

Seams can be made with natural or synthetic threads. In recent years, self-absorbable suture materials are increasingly being used, since the healing of such wounds is much easier and faster. In addition, such sutures do not need to be removed, and this greatly facilitates the recovery process after surgery, because the patient does not suffer from unnecessary discomfort during the removal of the threads. Such threads that can be absorbed can be of either natural origin (for example, bovine veins) or synthetic (multifilament: polysorb, vicryl; monofilament: polydioxanone, catgut, maxon, etc.).

Non-absorbable suture materials (silk, nylon, prolene, etc.) require removal from the wound after its edges have fused. But the fact that such threads are in the wound while it is healing increases the possibility of infection. In addition, during their removal, the wound surface is again slightly damaged, which complicates the healing of the sutures. You can find out more precisely when such stitches are removed from our article:.

How long it takes for sutures to heal depends on how they were applied. Thus, single-row sutures (the simplest, superficial ones) heal and can be removed after 3-5 days. And multi-row ones, when several layers of tissue are sewn together at once, heal longer and more difficult, in addition, there is a high probability of their suppuration. Therefore, such sutures are removed no earlier than after 7-10 days.

Stitches after childbirth

How long the sutures heal after childbirth, if they were natural, depends on how many ruptures occurred during childbirth. So, stitches can be placed on the cervix. They are performed with absorbable threads. These stitches do not require special care; you just need to give up sex for 1-2 months. But sutures on the vagina and perineum take longer and are more difficult to heal. It is impossible to apply any bandages to this area, so the seams here constantly get wet and stretch when moving, which makes it even more difficult for them to heal. Therefore, it is necessary to treat them as often as possible with antiseptics. The healing time for deep tears can take up to 3 months.

A suture from a caesarean section wound is made on the uterus and on the surrounding skin. At the same time, the suture on the uterus, made with absorbable threads, heals quite quickly and painlessly. However, it scars only two years after the operation, so doctors do not recommend planning a pregnancy before this period. But the seam on the skin is usually quite large and causes pain during healing. Such sutures are applied with non-absorbable materials, which will need to be removed after a week, or with absorbable materials, which will completely dissolve within two months.

How long does it take for a stitch to heal after surgery?

If the operation was performed on Monday evening, then on Saturday morning the sutures are removed. It does not hurt. Then they give sick leave if the operation was on the abdomen for another three weeks.

The postoperative suture should not be wetted; it is sealed with adhesive tape and the patient washes in the shower. Immediately pay attention so that the suture does not become keloid, that is, so that a scar does not appear. He looks quite ugly. Appears because the edges of the wound are not quite accurately connected. The scar is convex. It’s good, it’s out there, out of sight. If you immediately apply the ointment, the keloid scar may shrink.

At first, the suture heals and seems to grow together smoothly. Every day you don’t look, and then you discover this same scar.

The healing time of a suture after surgery, of course, depends on some associated factors, including the age of the person being operated on, his state of health, and what kind of therapy he receives, but here are the approximate time frames:

Any surgical suture should close on the seventh to ninth day after surgery. And it is after this amount of time that the stitches are removed.

For example, after a person has his appendicitis removed, the stitches on his body should heal on the seventh day.

If there was a very extensive abdominal operation, then the suture takes longer to heal, about 12 days.

If the operation was performed in the sternum area, the suture takes almost two weeks to heal.

The stitches on the head may heal within a week.

My stitch after surgery to remove appendicitis was healing approximately 7 days. On the 7th day, the sutures were removed. At this point, the seam had already healed quite well, so there was no fear that the skin would come apart without threads. True, out of 7 thread staples, for some reason only 5 were removed. I saw this already at home, because I was immediately afraid to look at this spectacle. At home I had to cut and pull out the remaining two threads myself.

And more. Take care and try not to strain the place where the suture is placed. It so happened that a few days after the operation I had a good laugh. I could just feel the threads cutting into the skin, and how the seam hadn’t come apart yet! There are still traces of the threads that cut into the skin then.

Sutures usually heal according to medical standards from 7 to 12 days. But here, not everything is so simple and does not always fit into the healing standards; the place where the sutures are placed, the age of the person and his illness play a big role. If a person has diabetes, the process of wound healing and stitch removal can take months. If the sutures are placed on places that are in motion, healing, oddly enough, occurs faster if the person is young and everything is in order with the immune system.

I don’t know about anyone else, but my cesarean section suture festered and did not heal for almost a whole month while I was in the hospital. It seems that the operation was well done. But something was bothering me all the time, and this definitely affected the condition of the suture after the operation. And the threads were removed later than required, and various physiotherapeutic procedures were carried out... but still the stitch took a very long time to heal. And most importantly, it remained painful for a very long time.

Well, for probably six months, I had to squeeze my stomach with my hands (covering the stitch) when I wanted to sneeze, cough or laugh a lot: it hurt, and I always thought that the stitch would come apart.

The healing time of a suture depends on several reasons:

• on the size of the scar itself (how much tissue is damaged);
• on the age of the patient;
• from the location of the scar.

On average, it is believed that a scar heals in about 10 days, and after six months to a year the scar should heal and look more neat.

It depends on what kind of skin is at the suture site, thin, thick, how tender it is and how ready it is for regeneration. It is also important how the person will eat, what vitamins and microelements will be supplied to the body, as well as how the person takes care of the suture site and what he applies. Usually 7-10 days are enough for complete healing.

It depends on where the operation was and where the suture was placed. If it’s on the head, then there are no muscles and the skin is practically motionless. If it’s on the tailbone, then problems with the seam can last for six months. Especially if the recovery time falls in the summer, because... Increased sweat accumulation in this area is very irritating and interferes with healing. Well, the versatility of the right and left buttocks when walking (one up, the other down) affects this process.

It happens differently, so to speak, it all depends on your body, but despite this individuality, it is generally accepted in the medical world that stitches begin to heal on days 5-9, and stitches heal completely on days 14-21. It all depends on the shape, type, and size of the seam. It is also important what else was used to treat the wound and what threads were used to stitch it up. If we are talking about small stitches, they can heal completely in 5-7 days.

Sutures are usually removed 7-10 days after surgery. As I feel, it becomes worse because the stitches have been removed and everything can come apart. By the way, for some time (I don’t remember how long, but for a long time) the scar needs to be smeared with brilliant green for better healing. It's certainly an unpleasant sight. and the holes for the drainage tubes may not heal for a very long time and fester, because they are not sutured.

Any surgical intervention is a forced measure associated with varying degrees of trauma to body tissues. How quickly the patient can return to active life depends on the recovery time of the body after surgery and the speed of healing of the sutures. Therefore, questions about how quickly the sutures will heal and how to avoid postoperative complications are so important. The speed of wound healing, the risk of complications and the appearance of the scar after surgery depend on the suture material and the method of suturing. We'll talk more about seams today in our article.

Types of suture materials and suturing methods in modern medicine

An ideal suture material should have the following characteristics:

Be smooth and glide without causing additional damage. Be elastic, stretchable, without causing compression and tissue necrosis. Be durable and withstand loads. Tie securely in knots. Be biocompatible with body tissues, inert (do not cause tissue irritation), and have low allergenicity. The material should not swell from moisture. The period of destruction (biodegradation) of absorbable materials must coincide with the time of wound healing.

Different suture materials have different qualities. Some of them are advantages, others are disadvantages of the material. For example, smooth threads will be difficult to tighten into a strong knot, and the use of natural materials, so valued in other areas, is often associated with an increased risk of developing infection or allergies. Therefore, the search for the ideal material continues, and so far there are at least 30 thread options, the choice of which depends on specific needs.

Suture materials are divided into synthetic and natural, absorbable and non-absorbable. In addition, materials are manufactured consisting of one thread or several: monofilament or multifilament, twisted, braided, having various coatings.

Non-absorbable materials:

Natural - silk, cotton. Silk is a relatively durable material, thanks to its plasticity it ensures the reliability of knots. Silk is a conditionally non-absorbable material: over time, its strength decreases, and after about a year the material is absorbed. In addition, silk threads cause a pronounced immune response and can serve as a reservoir of infection in the wound. Cotton has low strength and is also capable of causing intense inflammatory reactions. Stainless steel threads are durable and produce minimal inflammatory reactions. Used in abdominal surgeries, when suturing the sternum and tendons. Synthetic non-absorbable materials have the best characteristics. They are more durable and their use causes minimal inflammation. Such threads are used for matching soft tissues, in cardiac and neurosurgery, and ophthalmology.

Absorbable materials:

Natural catgut. The disadvantages of the material include a pronounced tissue reaction, the risk of infection, insufficient strength, inconvenience in use, and the inability to predict the timing of resorption. Therefore, the material is currently practically not used. Synthetic absorbable materials. Made from degradable biopolymers. They are divided into mono and polyfilament. Much more reliable compared to catgut. They have certain resorption times, which differ for different materials, are quite durable, do not cause significant tissue reactions, and do not slip in the hands. Not used in neuro and cardiac surgery, ophthalmology, in situations where constant strength of sutures is required (for suturing tendons, coronary vessels).

Suture methods:

Ligature sutures - they are used to ligate vessels to ensure hemostasis. Primary sutures - allow you to compare the edges of the wound for healing by primary intention. Sutures can be continuous or interrupted. According to indications, immersed, purse-string and subcutaneous sutures can be applied. Secondary sutures - this method is used to strengthen primary sutures, to re-close a wound with a large number of granulations, in order to strengthen a wound that heals by secondary intention. Such sutures are called retention sutures and are used to unload the wound and reduce tissue tension. If the primary suture was applied in a continuous manner, interrupted sutures are used for the secondary suture, and vice versa.

How long do stitches take to heal?

Every surgeon strives to achieve wound healing by primary intention. In this case, tissue restoration takes place in the shortest possible time, swelling is minimal, there is no suppuration, and the amount of discharge from the wound is insignificant. Scarring with this type of healing is minimal. The process goes through 3 phases:

Inflammatory reaction (first 5 days), when leukocytes and macrophages migrate to the wound area, destroying microbes, foreign particles, and destroyed cells. During this period, the connection of the tissues has not reached sufficient strength, and they are held together by seams. The phase of migration and proliferation (up to the 14th day), when fibroblasts produce collagen and fibrin in the wound. Thanks to this, granulation tissue is formed from the 5th day, and the strength of fixation of the wound edges increases. Phase of maturation and restructuring (from the 14th day until complete healing). During this phase, collagen synthesis and connective tissue formation continue. Gradually, a scar forms at the site of the wound.

How long does it take for stitches to be removed?

When the wound has healed to the point that it no longer requires the support of non-absorbable sutures, they are removed. The procedure is carried out under sterile conditions. At the first stage, the wound is treated with an antiseptic, and hydrogen peroxide is used to remove crusts. Grasping the thread with surgical tweezers, cross it at the point where it enters the skin. Gently pull the thread from the opposite side.

Suture removal time depending on their location:

Sutures on the skin of the torso and limbs should be left in place for 7 to 10 days. Stitches on the face and neck are removed after 2-5 days. Retention sutures are left in place for 2-6 weeks.

Factors influencing the healing process

The speed of healing of sutures depends on many factors, which can be divided into several groups:

Features and nature of the wound. Definitely, wound healing after minor surgery will be faster than after laparotomy. The process of tissue restoration is lengthened in the case of suturing a wound after an injury, when there has been contamination, penetration of foreign bodies, and crushing of tissue. Location of the wound. Healing occurs best in areas with good blood supply and a thin layer of subcutaneous fat. Factors determined by the nature and quality of surgical care provided. In this case, the features of the incision, the quality of intraoperative hemostasis (stopping bleeding), the type of suture materials used, the choice of suturing method, compliance with aseptic rules, and much more are important. Factors related to the patient’s age, weight, and health status. Tissue repair is faster at a young age and in people with normal body weight. Chronic diseases, in particular diabetes mellitus and other endocrine disorders, oncopathology, and vascular diseases, prolong the healing process and can provoke the development of complications. At risk are patients with foci of chronic infection, with reduced immunity, smokers, and HIV-infected people. Reasons related to caring for the postoperative wound and sutures, compliance with diet and drinking habits, physical activity of the patient in the postoperative period, following the surgeon’s recommendations, and taking medications.

How to properly care for seams

If the patient is in the hospital, a doctor or nurse will care for the sutures. At home, the patient should follow the doctor's recommendations for wound care. It is necessary to keep the wound clean, treat it daily with an antiseptic: a solution of iodine, potassium permanganate, brilliant green. If a bandage is applied, consult your doctor before removing it. Special medications can speed up healing. One of these products is contractubex gel, containing onion extract, allantoin, and heparin. It can be applied after epithelization of the wound.

For the speedy healing of postpartum sutures, strict adherence to hygiene rules is required:

• washing hands thoroughly before using the toilet;
• frequent change of gaskets;
• daily change of linen and towels;
• within a month, taking a bath should be replaced with a hygienic shower.

If there are external stitches on the perineum, in addition to careful hygiene, you need to take care of the dryness of the wound; for the first 2 weeks you should not sit on a hard surface, constipation should be avoided. It is recommended to lie on your side, sit on a circle or pillow. The doctor may recommend special exercises to improve blood supply to tissues and wound healing.

Healing of sutures after caesarean section

You will need to wear a postoperative bandage and maintain hygiene; after discharge, it is recommended to take a shower and wash the skin in the suture area twice a day with soap. At the end of the second week, you can use special ointments to restore the skin.

Healing of sutures after laparoscopy

Complications after laparoscopy are rare. To protect yourself, you should remain in bed for 24 hours after the intervention. At first, it is recommended to stick to a diet and give up alcohol. For body hygiene, a shower is used, and the suture area is treated with an antiseptic. The first 3 weeks limit physical activity.

Possible complications

The main complications during wound healing are pain, suppuration and insufficient sutures (dehiscence). Suppuration can develop due to the penetration of bacteria, fungi or viruses into the wound. Most often, infection is caused by bacteria. Therefore, after surgery, the surgeon often prescribes a course of antibiotics for prophylactic purposes. Postoperative suppuration requires identification of the pathogen and determination of its sensitivity to antibacterial agents. In addition to prescribing antibiotics, the wound may need to be opened and drained.

What to do if the seam comes apart?

Suture insufficiency is more often observed in elderly and debilitated patients. The most likely timing of complications is from 5 to 12 days after surgery. In such a situation, you should immediately seek medical help. The doctor will decide on further management of the wound: leave it open or re-suture the wound. In case of evisceration - penetration of an intestinal loop through a wound, emergency surgical intervention is required. This complication may occur due to bloating, severe coughing or vomiting.

What to do if the stitch hurts after surgery?

Pain in the suture area for a week after surgery can be considered normal. During the first few days, the surgeon may recommend taking a painkiller. Following the doctor’s recommendations will help reduce pain: limiting physical activity, wound care, wound hygiene. If the pain is intense or persists for a long time, you should consult a doctor, since pain may be a symptom of complications: inflammation, infection, formation of adhesions, hernia.

You can speed up wound healing using folk remedies. For this purpose, herbal mixtures are used internally in the form of infusions, extracts, decoctions and local applications, herbal ointments, rubbing. Here are some of the folk remedies used:

Pain and itching in the suture area can be relieved with herbal decoctions: chamomile, calendula, sage. Treatment of the wound with vegetable oils - sea buckthorn, tea tree, olive. The frequency of treatment is twice a day. Lubricating the scar with a cream containing calendula extract. Applying a cabbage leaf to the wound. The procedure has an anti-inflammatory and healing effect. The cabbage leaf must be clean; it must be doused with boiling water.

Before using herbal remedies, you should definitely consult a surgeon. He will help you choose individual treatment and give the necessary recommendations.

However, it is important not only to apply the suture correctly to the wound, but also to remove it correctly and, most importantly, in time, since prolonged exposure of the suture to the skin can cause purulent inflammation. After all, surgical thread is, in fact, a foreign material.

The timing of removal of surgical sutures largely depends on the person’s regenerative abilities and is purely individual. When removing sutures, an important aspect is the absence or presence of complications. All these aspects depend on the general condition of a person, namely his immune, endocrine, and cardiovascular systems.

A very important nuance when removing sutures is the nature of the surgical intervention and the characteristics of the disease. It should be noted that the removal of postoperative sutures is the prerogative of the operating surgeon and is prescribed strictly individually. It is also necessary to mention one more nuance: sutures in different parts of the body are removed after different periods of time, and this depends on the blood supply to the anatomical area where they are located.

According to generally accepted standards, sutures on the head after surgery are removed on the fifth day. In the same interval, the stitches placed on the face are removed.
After surgery for acute appendicitis or hernia repair, the sutures are removed on the seventh day.

Sutures placed during major surgical interventions on organs in the abdominal cavity, during laparotomy or caesarean section are removed, on average, on the tenth or twelfth day. Surgical sutures placed after thoracotomy (opening the chest) are removed either on the tenth day or after two weeks. This all depends on the factors described above.

Sutures that were placed after amputation are removed on the twelfth day.
If sutures were applied to elderly patients, cancer patients, weakened by pathology of internal organs, as well as patients suffering from chronic sepsis, all sutures are removed after two weeks.

If you notice that a few days after applying the sutures, redness appears under or around them, the sutures are wedged into the wound, and areas of marginal tissue necrosis appear, then the sutures must be removed urgently. You also need to remove them if pus comes out from under the stitches when pressed. This is done for the normal outflow of purulent contents and to prevent serious complications.