D8. Barbed Sutures as a Safe Replacement for Conventional Sutures following Reduction Mammoplasty

PURPOSE: Barbed sutures can quickly accomplish adequate wound closure after body contouring procedures. However, the effect of barbed suture on complication rates following reduction mammoplasty remains inconclusive. Our study analyzed barbed suture's impact on postoperative outcomes in a large patient cohort. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 550 reduction mammoplasties by a single surgeon between March 2015 and February 2023. Data on patient demographics and postoperative complications were collected from patient records and summarized with descriptive statistics. The variables were analyzed by breast, separated into barbed vs. conventional sutures groups. Student's t-test for continuous variables and Fisher's exact test for categorical variables were used to evaluate differences in demographics and postoperative outcomes between the two cohorts. 1:2 matching with no significant differences in baseline demographics was used to generate a cohort of 280 conventional and 560 barbed suture closure breasts. RESULTS: Of 1080 breasts, 800 (74.1%) underwent barbed suture closure and 280 (25.9%) with conventional suture. After matching to control for demographic differences, rates of dehiscence (p<0.001), nipple necrosis (p=0.037), and hypertrophic scarring (p=0.002) were lower in the barbed suture cohort. There were statistically similar rates of seroma, hematoma, infection, nipple insensitivity, and fat necrosis. CONCLUSION: Despite the higher price of barbed sutures, their use in reduction mammoplasty cases conferred lower rates of complications than conventional sutures, highlighting their safety and efficacy.