Argon laser suture lysis with different suture materials. An experimental study.

In an in vitro study, 10/0 nylon was found to require a significantly lower laser energy density to produce suture lysis following a single shot than either 10/0 Dacron or 10/0 prolene. Nylon and Dacron monofilament sutures ruptured at reproducible energy levels without significant observable changes at subthreshold irradiation. Prolene, however, was observed to stretch at energy levels below the lysis threshold, under the standard tension produced by a weight of 0.36 (SD 0.02) g. This feature may be of value when performing laser treatment to trabeculectomy flap sutures in the early postoperative period.