Clinical Equivalence of Polyglycolic Acid Suture and Polyglactin 910 Suture for Subcutaneous Tissue Closure After Cesarean Delivery: A Single-Blind Randomized Study

Figures & data

Figure 1 CONSORT flow chart of study design.

Table 1 Baseline Characteristics of the Study Participants

Characteristics		Polyglycolic Acid Suture (n=54)	Polyglactin 910 Suture (n=54)	p value
Demographics
Age (years), Mean±SD		26.92±5.37	27.67±4.99	0.45
Weight (kg), Mean±SD		73.68±8.07	73.28±9.88	0.82
Height (cm), Mean±SD		157.25±6.38	158.25±9.50	0.52
BMI (kg/m^2), Mean±SD		29.88±3.68	29.35±3.96	0.47
Vital signs
Pulse rate (beats/minute), Mean±SD		84.72±10.38	84.48±12.00	0.91
Respiratory rate (breaths/minute), Mean±SD		19.24±2.14	18.87±2.59	0.42
Systolic blood pressure (mmHg), Mean±SD		117.76±14.73	119.06±17.08	0.67
Diastolic blood Pressure (mmHg), Mean±SD		77.02±8.04	78.24±8.70	0.45
Obstetric details
Gestation period (weeks), Mean±SD		37.16±3.16	38.10±2.16	0.07
Parity, n (%)	0	42 (77.78)	47 (87.04)	0.42
	1	11 (20.37)	6 (11.11)
	2	1 (1.85)	1(1.85)
	≥3	0	0
Gravida, n (%)	1	33 (61.11)	40 (74.07)	0.32
	2	15 (27.78)	9 (16.67)
	≥3	6 (11.11)	5 (9.26)
Fetal presentation in utero, n (%)	Breech	4 (7.41)	4 (7.41)	0.60
	Cephalic	50 (92.59)	49 (90.74)
	Transverse	0	1 (1.85)
Reason for cesarean section, n (%)	Fetal Distress	35 (64.82)	39 (72.22)	0.25
	Gestational Hypertension	1 (1.85)	1 (1.85)
	Gestational/Uncontrolled Diabetes Mellitus	3 (5.56)	0
	Intrauterine Growth Retardation	9 (16.67)	8 (14.82)
	Maternal Request	1 (1.85)	1 (1.85)
	Post-myomectomy	1 (1.85)	0
	Septate Uterus	1 (1.85)	1 (1.85)
	IUI and IVF Conception	3 (5.56)	4 (7.41)
Birth weight of infant (Kg), Mean±SD		2.63±0.72	2.78±0.55	0.24

Abbreviations: SD, standard deviation; BMI, body mass index; IUI, intrauterine insemination; IVF, in vitro fertilization.

Table 2 Intraoperative and Post-Operative Characteristics of the Study Participants

Characteristics		Polyglycolic Acid Suture (n=54)	Polyglactin 910 Suture (n=54)	p value
Intraoperative profile
Total operative time (minutes), Mean±SD		39.94±17.15	42.22±20.67	0.53
Number of sutures used, Mean±SD		1.04±0.19	1.02±0.14	0.55
Number of sutures used, n (%)	1 suture	52 (96.30)	53 (98.15)	0.62
	2 sutures	2 (3.70)	1 (1.85)
Size of sutures used, n (%)	Size 1–0 suture	29 (53.70)	28 (51.85)	0.85
	Size 2–0 suture	25 (46.30)	26 (48.15)
Thickness of subcutaneous tissue, n (%)	2 cm	11 (20.37)	9 (16.67)	0.68
	3 cm	14 (25.93)	18 (33.33)
	4 cm	29 (53.70)	27 (50.00)
Technique for closure of subcutaneous tissue, n (%)	Continuous	29 (53.70)	28 (51.85)	0.33
	Interrupted	25 (46.30)	26 (48.15)
Post-operative profile
Time of onset of pain after surgery (hours), Mean±SD		3.02±2.34	3.53±2.86	0.22
Number of analgesics prescribed, Mean±SD	Day 0	1.85 ± 0.41	1.83 ± 0.38	0.81
	Day 3	1.52 ± 0.57	1.61 ± 0.53	0.39
	Day 4–7	1.39±0.49	1.48 ± 0.54	0.35
	Week 6	0	0.02 ± 0.14	0.32
	Week 12	0	0.02 ± 0.14	0.34
Hospital stay (days), Mean±SD		4.96±1.32	5.00±1.29	0.88
Return to normal day to day activity (days), Mean±SD		26.26±18.20	25.59±15.84	0.88

Abbreviation: SD, standard deviation.

Figure 2 Intraoperative suture handling parameters [polyglycolic acid suture (PGA) (n=54) and polyglactin 910 suture (PG-910) (n=54)].

Figure 3 Change in (A) mean pain and (B) grade of pain across follow-up visits [polyglycolic acid suture (PGA) (n=54) and polyglactin 910 suture (PG-910) (n=54)].

Table 3 Details of Concomitant or Prescribed Medications

Prescribed Medications	Polyglycolic Acid Suture (n=54)	Polyglactin 910 Suture (n=54)
Analgesics, n (%)
Paracetamol	54 (100.00)	53 (98.15)
Tramadol	52 (96.30)	54 (100.00)
Antibiotics, n (%)
Ceftriaxone	54 (100.00)	53 (98.15)
Metronidazole	25 (46.30)	18 (32.33)
Cefuroxime	19 (35.19)	14 (25.93)
Gentamycin	21 (38.89)	16 (29.63)
Amoxycillin	20 (37.04)	17 (31.48)
Clavulanic acid	19 (35.19)	16 (29.63)
Mupirocin	19 (35.19)	17 (31.48)
Delivery medications, n (%)
Tranexamic acid	22 (40.74)	18 (33.33)