I have a tummy tuck schedule for February. My doctor says that bc I’m young, there’s a chance that I may change my mind about having children. He said bc of this, he will use all dissolvable stitches throughout the whole procedure. For the muscle repair, EVERYTHING.
I’m wondering how this will affect me or my results differently than regular stitches. I do not want anything negatively affected
We use only dissolving sutures for tummy tuck and apply post-surgical compression garments so that as they dissolve, the abdomen remains tight and compressed until the patient's own collagen scar is sufficiently strong to replace the sutures. This is several months. Even non-dissolving (permanent) sutures do not guarantee the deep fascial plication will remain tight. If over-tightened, the abdominal wall will relax post-abdominoplasty regardless of the suture type. Sutures merely splint the tissue together early after surgery but are ultimately replaced by the patient's synthesized collagen scar during healing.
I switched from permanent sutures to resorbable for the muscle plication years ago, with no difference in the durability of the repair.
That is completely reasonable. Many surgeons use only absorbable sutures for the plication regardless of age or pregnancy status. Good luck with your surgery!
Dissolvable sutures are not what most people think. There are, in fact, multiple types of dissolvable sutures. Even nylon, which is considered a permanent suture dissolve after about four or five years. Most surgeons use a suture that dissolves after 6 to 9 months for this type of surgery. This allows the body enough time to produce enough heavy scar to prevent widening of the area after the suture dissolves. If you were worried about this simply talk to your surgeon and what his experience has been over time using this technique.
I don't think this will affect you in any way. The trend is to use absorbable sutures for most everything now. I stopped using permanent sutures several years ago. But, this is a question that you should be asking your own surgeon.
Thank you for your excellent question and consideration. A variety of different sutures/stitches and materials are used when I complete an abdominoplasty. All of my sutures/stitches are dissolvable as well. Some surgeons use permanent/non-dissolving sutures for the muscle tightening portion, but there is no clear advantage or disadvantage to this. Be sure to see and visit with an experienced, Board Certified Plastic Surgeon before undergoing any surgical procedure.