Figure 1. Interrupted suture with stiff suture tags. Even though a continuous suturing technique is less time consuming, the failure of any part of the suture may result in loosening along its whole length. Therefore, horizontal mattress and interrupted suturing techniques are recommended for a guided bone regeneration procedure. A polypropylene suture (PPS) is also used to avoid wound dehiscence, because a PPS can resist muscle pull with prolonged high tensile strength, knot security, expansion due to swollen soft tissue, and minimal tissue reaction. However, the stiff suture tags of a PPS may irritate the fragile mucosa and result in pain and hematoma. If suture irritation occurs after a guided bone regeneration procedure, fabricating a custom soft tissue guard is preferable to early removal of the sutures. However, an additional laboratory procedure is required, and the patient must wear a guard continuously for 2 weeks until the sutures can be removed. Moreover, direct pressure on a surgical site may result in membrane exposure. This tip presents a modified interrupted suture technique to avoid suture irritation without a guard. However, this method is technique-sensitive because of the kinking effect of this material and the difficulty in accurately placing the sutures.
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