Amador ledger., 1900-11-30
SURGEONS THREAD.
MATERIALS THAT ARE USED TO SEW
UP CUTS AND WOUNDS.

There Are Many Kinds OF Ingtru.
ments and Needles and . Greas
Variety of Stitches Used In Life
Saving Operations.
Imagine a tailor who deliberately
plans TO have the stitches he so careful
ly sews give way at a certain time
Suppose he should use one kind OF
thread in a coat warranted to break ir
one week, another kind in the trousers
guaranteed to fall apart in a month
and using permanent material only II.
making up waistcoat. Yet this is ex
actly what the surgeon does every day
Sutures, as the surgeons thread is call
ed, are made from various materials
according to the requirements. Catgut
silk thread, silkworm gut, silver wire
kangaroo tendons and horsehair are II
common use.
Catgut was at one time obtained
from members of the feline tribe. Al
its use increased the supply ran short
Experiments showed that sheep fur
nished an acceptable substitute. Sc
catgut used by surgeons, jewelers. and
makers Of musical instruments comes
now from the submucosa, or middle
layer of the Intestine of a sheep. 1t ii
the most commonly used of all sutur
ing material. Catgut stitches are alb
sorbed in from five to seven days, de
pending on the individual upon whom
they are used. In occasional instances
catgut stitches have been known to be
absorbed in 36 hours. By treating Il
with chronic acid such a suture will
remain in position for many weeks
Because of its adaptability and the
cheapness of the material catgut heads
the list of surgical threads.
Silkworm gut can be more thorough.
ly sterilized than any other known
suture material. In preparing sutures
Of all sorts the usual method is to bot
for "a hours. then place it In alcohol
for day or two and follow this With
bath of mercury solution. Notwith
standing this thorough cleansing, the
microscope reveals germs still present
in varying numbers in many instances
Silkworm Sutures show fewer micro.
organisms than other materials treated
in this way; hence 1t Is highly recon.
mended for surgical work. The mate.
rial is extracted from a silkworm killed
Immediately before it begins to weave
its cocoon. Unfortunately for sur.
geons, silkworm sutures are not alb,
sorbed, but remain permanently In
place. For this reason its use is re-
stricted to special work.
The short, tough tendons taken from
the tail of kangaroo furnish surgeons
with valuable thread. kangaroo ten
don stitches will hold fast for many
days. The time of absorption is esti-
mated from four weeks to two months.
Horsehair and silver wire sutures are
nonabsorbable. The fluids of the body
do not affect them in any way, and
until foreiblg removed. By lett is
asserted that silver wire has distinct
antiseptic properties. Nitrate of silver
tn solution Is known to be a good ger
micide. Hence 1t is argued that sil,
yer salt injuriCo.s,s to germ development
is formed by the contt.ect Of body fluids
with silver wire. Thus stitcG 9bscesses
are said to be Of rare occurrence wheff
silver wire is utilized.
Silk thread, such as is used by tai
lors, but of the finest quality and of
larger caliber, is frequently used. The
stitches are practically nonabsorbable,
though at times no trace of the thread
has been found in the tissue at the ex-
piration of a year.
To accommodate this assortment of
threads special varieties of needles are
naturally required. A surgeons "house-
wife" contains needles that would
scarcely be recognized as such by the
uninitiated. Besides the needles curv-
ed in different segments of a circle,
surgeons use needles shaped like
spears, javelins and bayonet points.
Some are as long as bodkins. terminal
Ing in point like miniature knife
blade. Others have the sharpened end
triangular, with the apices OF the an
giles sharpened to a razor edge. Some
few are formed like ordinary sewing
needles, but made Of greater tensile
strength.
Instead of a thimble a surgeon uses
an instrument called a needle holder.
1t is shaped like pair of scissors, the
points Of which are blunt clamps. The
needle is held fast between the jaws
of the clamps until released by opening
the two blades as scissors are opened.
Then fresh hold is taken, and the ac-
ton repeated with every stitch.
A skillful surgeon has perfect COM
mand of the needle at all times There
are moments during an operation when
well placed stitch means saving the
life of patient. At such times the
skillfui surgeon displays celerity and
deftness not surpassed In embroidery.
The surgeon relies upon certain
stitches for different needs, just as the
dressmaker picks and chooses among
the various forms of stitching. The
hemstitoh. catstitch, whalebone, her.
ringbone, running stitch and back hand
30 dear to the feminine fingers have
their counterparts In the surgeons
mattress suture, interrupted and con-
tinuous suture, subcuticular suture,
purse string and figure eight sutures,
Lembert and Czerney sutures. AS the
seamstress selects an appropriate
stitch for seam, a buttonhole or an
idging, so the surgeon chooses In form
ing his life saving stitches.-New York
Sun.
Her Way
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