Canadian family physician Médecin de famille canadien
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A 4-year-old child presented to my office recently with a 2-cm forehead laceration. The child had needle phobia and was very upset, so suturing in the office might have been very challenging. The parents were also concerned about the use of suture. Can topical skin adhesives (TSAs) be used instead of sutures, and what factors should be considered? ⋯ Lacerations in children are common and TSAs are useful alternatives to sutures. They achieve comparable outcomes to suturing in appropriately selected wounds. Appropriate lacerations are small, superficial, appropriately cleaned, and have well approximated edges that are not under tension. Complications such as wound dehiscence and infection are rare and cosmetic outcomes are comparable to sutures. Using TSAs can also save time, minimize patient anxiety, and eliminate the need for suture removal.
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To summarize high-quality studies for 10 topics from 2020 that have strong relevance to primary care practice. ⋯ Research from 2020 produced several high-quality studies in diabetes and cardiovascular disease, but also included a variety of other conditions relevant to primary care such as vaginal operative births, alcohol use disorder, weight loss, and chronic leg edema.