Outcomes of Running Locking Suture vs Standard Running Suture in Surgical Wounds

Recruiting now · Not applicable

Conditions studied: Scarring

In brief

When patients have surgery on the head and face, stitches are the standard way to close the wound. Wounds always result in a scar, but doctors are always looking for ways to reduce scarring. Several studies have been done to test ways to close wounds that reduce scarring. The most commonly performed closure technique uses running sutures, where a single strand of suture is continued along the length of the wound with a series of uninterrupted stiches. However, alternative closure techniques exist such as the running locking suture, which can offer advantages such as improved tension and thus reduce post-operative complications with better aesthetic outcome. In this study, half the wound will be stitched with standard running sutures and the other half will be stitched with running locking sutures. This will allow us to see if the side with running locking sutures heals with less scarring.

Key facts

Study ID: NCT06288009
Run by: University of California, Davis
People needed: 50
Starts: 2024-08-01
Expected to finish: 2026-10-01
Last updated by the study team: 2025-12-05

Who can join

Age: 18 and older. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

18 years of age or older
Able to give informed consent themselves
Patient scheduled for cutaneous surgical procedure on the head or neck with predicted primary closure
Willing to return for follow up visit

You may not qualify if…

Incarceration
Under 18 years of age
Pregnant Women
Unable to understand written and oral English
Wounds with predicted closure length less than 3cm

Where it is running

University of California, Davis - Dermatology Department — Sacramento, California, United States (enrolling)

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

Trial information comes from ClinicalTrials.gov and is refreshed daily. TrialsForMe does not provide medical care and does not run the studies it lists.