And that's fine with both doctors and kids. Skin glue often takes the place of stitches-and it appears to do an equally good job. A recent study found that one-year after treatment, a cosmetic surgeon couldn't tell which wounds were stitched and which were glued. A member of the State Medical Society's Commission on Injury Prevention and Control, says the glue is so effective that wounds sometimes heal without a scar. Doctor Edward Callahan, an emergency medicine specialist from Janesville, says glue has another benefit, too.
Kids love it.
And especially because there's no needles, all we do is clean the wound, dry it off and put it back together. And kids understand the concept of glue very well, so if we're going to glue it back together, that's not a frightening thing for them. But Doctor Callahan says stitches are still necessary for some wounds. For example, glue can not be used around the eyes because it could leak and seal the eyelid. In the right cases though, Doctor Callahan says the glue is as tough and resilient as skin.