Self Care Articles

Is this your symptom?

• Suture, staple or stitches questions
• Skin glue (Dermabond) is also covered

When Sutures (Stitches) are Needed for Cuts

• Any cut that is split open or gaping needs the edges of the wound to be brought together. This can be done with sutures, staples, paper stitches or glue.
• Cuts longer than ½ inch (12 mm) often need sutures.
• On the face, cuts longer than ¼ inch (6 mm) often need to be seen. They often need to be closed with sutures or skin glue.
• Any open wound that may need sutures should be seen as soon as possible. Ideally, they should be checked and closed within 6 hours. Reason: to prevent wound infections and to help start healing.
• Wounds that are left gaping will take longer to heal. They are more likely to get infected and leave you with a scar. There is no cutoff time, however, for treating open wounds.

When Sutures (Stitches) Should be Removed

• Stitches and staples are used to keep wounds together during healing.
• They need to be removed within 4-14 days.
• The removal date depends on the location of the stitches or staples.
• Removal should not be delayed. Reason: the suture or staples will leave skin marks.

Wounds That Re-Open After Closure

• Sutures that come out too early cause concern.
• If the wound has reopened, call your doctor now. General guidelines for re-suturing or re-gluing are listed below:
  • Face Cuts. If a face wound has re-opened, call your doctor now. The cut may need to be re-glued or re-stitched. It does not matter how long it's been since sutures (or glue) were placed.
  • Body Cuts and It's Been Less Than 48 Hours. If the wound is anywhere other than the face, call your doctor now. The cut may need restitched (or glued) if gaping open. This is sometimes done if suturing was less than 48 hours ago.
  • Body Cuts and It's Been More Than 48 Hours. Call your doctor now for advice. After 48 hours, re-suturing is rarely done (except on the face). After 48 hours, the sutured wound can be re-closed with tape.
  • Cut Is Closed, but suture has come out early. The wound should heal fine without any more treatment, but your doctor may advise reinforcing paper sutures for a few more days. Check with your doctor within the next 24 hours and protect the wound from further injury while you wait.