Biozip Suture Group 24 Katie Good and Emily Schaefer Advisors: Bruce Beyer, M.D. Paul King, Ph.D.

Problem Statement Gynecological procedures - confined areas Difficult to apply tension Suture integrity compromised Alternative method for closing tissue or pedicles Require tension in one direction

Desired Qualities Bioabsorbable Tensile strength 80 – 100 N Degradation time 3 -4 weeks Unidirectional Tension Maintain suture integrity Simple closure procedure

Design Significance C-section Million surgeries/year Hysterectomy - 600,000 surgeries/year Improved suture design will Decrease surgery time and therefore potential for infection Easier closure procedure Greater confidence in suture integrity

Competing Technologies Traditional suture tension in opposite directions, form knots Laparoscopic technique Quik-Stitch® LIGA – CLIPS (Ethicon) Metal surgical clips Electrocautery Sealing pedicles

Twist Tie Approach Vicryl 0 and 2 gauge Braided Coated Dexon 3 gauge Braided Uncoated Clamp & Fuse

Budget Hemostat 7.25” ~ $21.00 Suture material Vicryl 0 (qty 6) ~ $1.57 ea Vircyl 2-0 (qty 6) ~ $1.50 ea Dexon 3-0 (qty 3) ~ $15.96 ea Total ~ $87.30 Heated tweezers ~ $209

Fusing Sutures Dexon did not fuse Vicryl 3 sutures per trial Trials Gauge Heat Setting Temperature (°F) Exposure Time (sec) Tensile Strength

Testing Our Sutures Instron Tensiometer BlueHill software Ideal for < 2kN 0.4% accuracy Output Tensile strength Elongation Breaking Point Located in VUMC SDRCC

Heating Element Heated Tweezers Wax Connections Pedal controls power to tweezers No specific temperature listed

Current Status Purchased sutures from Hospital Supply Fused Vicryl sutures w. hair straightener Meeting – Dr. DasGupta on Thursday Learn to use tensiometer Test samples Meet with Dr. Beyer Ask to tie sutures for comparison testing

Future Work Research other heating element options Research current surgical heating techniques Dr. Beyer test procedure for ease of application Paper and poster