[Surgical suture material-fundamentals].

At the end of surgical therapy, the access is closed with sutures. Surgical sutures are thus used to adapt wound edges and tissues. The task of the suture material is to hold the tissues together until healing. For patients, a cosmetically good suture is often the sign of good surgery. Different tissues and layers have different requirements regarding the suture material. The different types from monofil to polyfil, braided, from absorbable to nonabsorbable are presented. The classification of suture strengths is compared. The areas of application of different strengths and the duration until removal of the sutures for the different body regions are presented. The one-hand and two-hand techniques of surgical knots are explained in detail. The technique of suture removal is presented. In the online material, the suture materials of different composition and manufacturers can be compared.