Braided Marlex Suture

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Abstract
The low foreign-body reaction exhibited by Marlex1and Marlex mesh4suggested to us and to others,2,3its possible use as a suture. We found that the monofilament, while possessing excellent tensile strength, was lacking in knot retention. This was due to the slickness (self-lubrication) of the monofilament and somewhat to "plastic memory," a tendency of certain plastics to assume their original shapes following twisting or torsion. We found that a twisted multifilament thread (70 fibers) lacked tensile strength. Various braids of the monofilament were then tried and we finally discovered that a 8-strand braid of 6 mil monofilament (the same size monofilament used in making knitted Marlex mesh) made an excellent suture.4By braiding the monofilament, sufficient roughness was imparted to it to provide good knot retention. The 8-strand braid of 6 mil Marlex monofilament has a knot pull breaking strength of 7 lb., which corresponds

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