Advances in biopolymer based surgical sutures

Sutures are an integral part of any surgical process. New and modified suture materials have been developed over time to cater the surgical needs. Most of the studies have focused on improving the properties of basic materials used for suture fabrication. With recent advances in suture technology, it is possible to surface modify sutures by conjugating with various drugs or biomolecules that can enhance the therapeutic properties thereby providing faster wound closure. Still, sutures are a major cause of surgical site infection. Antibacterial sutures have been developed with improved biological properties when compared to normal sutures. The immunogenic response caused by synthetic sutures has been a major concern of the medical fraternity. In most cases, the degradation products of synthetic polymers result in adverse reactions within the body. This can be overcome using biopolymers that are biocompatible and biodegradable. Among the various biopolymers, polylactic acid, chitin, cellulose, etc. have found promising applications in the biomedical field. This is due to their nontoxic and biodegradable properties. So, in this chapter, we briefly summarize the recent advances in biopolymers with special emphasis on their usage as surgical sutures.