staples or sutures???

I am getting really nervous, since I have not ever had surgery, about this staples or sutures issue. Is one method less painful or does one heal better than the other??? Thanks!

I think it depends on your doctor and your incision -- ask ahead of time and they will probably be able to tell you what they plan to use and why. Most folks seem to have internal dissolvable sutures and external staples that come out before you go home. That's what I've got -- staples don't hurt to have them removed, there's less "tugging" than sutures. Someone on the medical team told me that if I had a vertical cut instead of a bikini cut I'd probably have sutures instead of staples.

Katie

I had staples for my gall bladder and wasn't thrilled since it was suppose to be a bandaid surgery. Yes 13 of them. I don't like the way the surgery did them at all.

I did like the way the gyn did my TAH. He used some stitches but you could not see anything at all, he also used glue. My incision looks great. It is so much better than the scars from the other surgery. At 3 wks post op my bikini scar looked great. (as good as any could, it is a scar ha ha) But I have had no problems with it at all.

Even I told the gyn he needed to go give lessons to the surgeon. He had a very funny look on his face!!!

Good luck

I went to a pre-op class last week and we were told that we would be getting dissolvable sutures on the inside and staples (for ab. hyster.) on the outside. We were told removal does not hurt. I get Gumby legs thinking about staples but the more I hear, the less afraid I am. We were also told the medical profession is more concerned about pain control than they used to be and a patient will not get up and move around to heal if they are in pain so they want the patient comfortable and pain medications are more advanced and used more. I liked that, took away a lot of my fears!
Good luck!
Miranda

Hi!
I am two weeks post-op from my supracervical abdominal hyst.(I kept those oo's!) My surgeon used the internal suture/external staple combination. She said there is less of a chance of infection from the staples and if infection did occur, it was much easier on the patient if three staples were pulled to allow for drainage of the wound rather than pulling out one rather continous suture line. I was in the hospital for three and one half days. On the morning of discharge, they pulled the staples and taped me up with something called steri strips. I will say that three of the staples hurt like heck when they pulled them. Apparently, there was extra skin stuck in the three that hurt. (I do have a bit of a pot belly, maybe this had something to do with it.) Anyway, I couldn't even feel the rest come out.
I am not a doctor, so I would go with whatever your doctor wants to do. It is still good to ask your doc what he/she prefers and why. Remember, most docs want you to ask questions. You are an active participant in your own health care, so don't be bashful in asking questions.
I hope everything goes well for you!
Linda

Hi, I too had internal stitches and staples on the outside. My staples were in one week. I had to go to the doctor's office to have them taken out. They pulled a little bit but didn't really hurt. "Pinched" is the word the nurse used and that is about what it felt like, a small pinch. No pain. My outside incision looks great. You can hardly see it at all. I had a horizontal bikini cut at the hairline. It looks like a small pencil line and that's about it. The staples didn't really bother me at all. They kind of mess with your head, because you think they will like fall out or get caught or something awful thing like that, but mine didn't. I even laid on them with a pillow under me. Hope this helps.

Something I realized with my staples (I had internal sutures and 14 staples on a horizontal incision) is that we freak about them because we are thinking of regular paper staples. Paper staples get CRIMPED...the little edges are bent under. Surgical staples stay straight! Like paper staples before they go in the stapler.

Once you visualize that, it's a little easier to get your mind around having them in/on your body. When they take them out, they just kind of pull them straight up and out. No more painful than pulling one pubic hair.

I had more pain from the steri strips sticking to my hair than I had from the staples. Ouch!!!

Karen

I had hidden sutures only. They held really well on the day after surgery when I vomited 6 times! I was worried because I didn't think sutures would not hold, but they did the job! Best of luck

HAD TWO C-SECTIONS THEN A VAG DELIVERY. HAD STAPLES WITH C-SECTS NO PROBLEM. TORE PRETTY BAD WITH VAG HAD MANY STITCHES. OUCH

HAD STAPLES WITH TAHBSO--SKIN HAD ALREADY STARTED TO HEAL OVER THEM ON DAY 5 WHEN THEY WERE REMOVED. MOST WERE PAINLESS--3 WERE....OUCH!!!!

PREFERRED STAPLES WAY OVER STITCHES ANYTIME!

I will be 2 wks post-op tomorrow and was scared of having the staples. I've had sutures a few times in the past and I thought that they hurt when they took them out, so I was really worried about the staples.

Well, I came home with the staples and didn't have them removed until the other day (8th day post-op) and they didn't hurt at all coming out!! With of a couple of the staples I did feel a slight pinch...but most of them I didn't feel at all coming out. Hope these posts help you not to worry!