I have been using Steri-Strip S surgical skin closures for the last 1 year. I learned about the product through an editorial comment made by one of my colleagues in the journal Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery when speaking of ways to reduce surgical time. Always looking for more efficiency in the operating room, I got some samples and have found that there were many applications, both in the clinic operating suite as well as the main operating room. Their ease of application, after a minimal amount of instruction, make it "fun" to close a large abdominoplasty or lower body lift wound, a task I always considered a "necessary evil" at the end of a long case. The adhesive is maintained far longer than the traditional Steri-Strip Closures, often staying in place for over 2 weeks, despite bathing. There is, of course, no need for suture line care on the part of the patient or his or her family, thereby eliminating another "responsibility" of the patient. The skin closures are tolerated quite well by the patient, particularly after I tell them that their use will eliminate the "cross hatching" that is so predictable when leaving skin sutures in place for more than 7 days. I also like the variety of sizes that are available, making them equally useful for small wounds of the cheek or the large wounds of a reduction mammoplasty. I am sure that regular use of Steri-Strip S Closures will reduce OR time by between 5% and 10%, depending on the size of the wound (e.g., for lower body lift and medial thigh lift, by at least 1 hour). But the best thing about the product is that the end result of healing is far superior to regular skin closures. I understand that there is now a dermal stapler on the market; combining this product with the Steri-Strip S Closures will result in even more efficient closures.
David L. Larson, MD