Nederlands tijdschrift voor geneeskunde
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The history of wound suturing reflects that of surgery itself. In wound treatment, which encloses the technique of suturing as well as suturing materials, wound suturing plays a prominent role. In ancient India, Egypt and the Greek and Roman societies wound treatments as well as suturing techniques and instruments were developed that strongly resemble those in our days. ⋯ They were introduced into clinical practice in the early decades of the 20th century. The greatest progress in wound suturing started after World War II with the introduction of advanced semiautomatic stapler machinery and with the manufacture of synthetic non-resorbable and resorbable fibres. They have revolutionized surgery and were instrumental in developing new fields (microsurgery).