Early Versus Delayed Skin Staple Removal Following Cesarean Delivery in the Obese Patient

Stopped early · Phase 2/Phase 3

Conditions studied: Wound Complications, Obesity

In brief

Whenever a person has a cesarean section there is a risk that there will be a problem with healing of the wound. The most common type of wound healing problem is separation and opening of the skin and fatty tissue just beneath the skin. This type of wound healing problem happens more often when the patient has a high body weight. In most cases, metal staples are used to bring the skin together to close the wound. Usually, the staples are left in place for a longer time when the woman is heavy, in hopes of decreasing the chance of wound healing problems. But it is not known if leaving the staples in for a longer time is actually helpful. In some cases, leaving the staples in longer may cause more pain and will require you to see the doctor again to get the staples taken out. The purpose of this study is to see if there is any difference in how the wound heals in heavy women after cesarean section when the skin staples are removed after a short period of time versus a long period of time.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT01114451

Run by

Prisma Health-Upstate

People needed

292

Starts

2009-10-01

Expected to finish

2012-02-01

Last updated by the study team

2021-03-17

Who can join

Age: 18 and older, up to 52. Sex: female. Healthy volunteers: accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Cesarean delivery
• Body Mass Index ≥ 30 kg/m2
• Transverse (Pfannenstiel or Joel-Cohen) skin incision
• Subcutaneous wound depth ≥ 2 cm
• Surgical staple skin closure

You may not qualify if…

• Vertical skin incision
• Non-staple skin closure
• Wound complication (superficial dehiscence, abscess, seroma, hematoma, cellulitis)
• Any complication necessitating prolonged hospitalization

Where it is running

• Greenville Memorial Hospital — Greenville, South Carolina, United States

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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