P REPLACED appositional silk sutures in cataract surgery are quite satisfactory except that they require removal. It would be desirable to use an absorbable material that could be preplaced under a limbal based flap and would remain intact until the tissues were healed. Previously, the other choice open to the cataract surgeon was 6-0 mild chromic catgut sutures. These had the disadvantages of being difficult to handle and not remaining in place on the globe.
We have developed a method to overcome this difficulty using 7-0 chromic collagen or 7-0 chromic catgut swaged on spatula type cutting needles (blue-dyed 7-0 chromic collagen on double-armed GS-9 spatula type needles, 1797G blue-dyed chromic catgut on double-armed GS-9 spatula type needles).
Technique
All cases were done using locally applied anesthesia and a limbal based flap. A groove is made from 9 to 3 o'clock with a knife (Beaver No. 64), two-thirds through the