MORE sutures are being used during a cataract procedure since the advent of smaller suture material and finer needles. The problem of getting suture ends tangled may occur during the course of a cataract extraction, and it is also frequently difficult to get rapid approximation of the wound edges with so many sutures. Scheie introduced the concept of a single double-arm mattress suture at the 12-o'clock position.1 The authors have enlarged upon this idea and recommend the use of additional double-arm sutures. The use of double-arm sutures for closing corneoscleral incisions allows a rapid closure and minimizes the possibility of tangling suture ends.
Technique
The sutures may be placed in position either before or after the corneal incision, eg, preplaced or post-placed. Either limbal- or fornixbased conjunctival flaps are acceptable along with any type number of sutures. I use a fornix-based flap with six 6-0 chromic gut sutures which