A prospective comparison of octyl-2-cyanoacrylate and suture in standardized facial wounds

Regarding the cosmetic results of wound closure using tissue adhesives as opposed to sutured wounds, most published studies are performed on children and with non-standardized lacerations, which makes it difficult to transfer the results to facial incisional wounds in adults. There are also conflicting conclusions about the cosmetic results. The purpose of this randomized prospective study was to compare the cosmetic outcomes of wound closure with sutures and octyl-2-cyanoacrylate in standardized facial wounds in adults. To compare very similar facial wounds, the infraorbital cut (lower eyelid incision) was used in 45 patients. The assessment was performed by patients and surgeons blind to the data. Phase-shifting profilometry was used to measure the profile of the scars. No early complications were observed in any group. The wound depth in the tissue adhesive group was significantly greater than in the suture group. There were no differences in the overall cosmetic results among all patients in the two groups. Interestingly, in the younger patients the result of the sutured wounds was superior to that of the adhesive-treated patients. The Dermabond skin adhesive provides a means of closure of facial surgical wounds without early complications, but adjustment of the edges of the wound and the cosmetic result in younger patients are less successful than with thin sutures.

Möglichkeiten zur objektiven Beurteilung von Narben

AIM OF THE STUDY

Cosmetic outcome of surgical treatment in the facial region is influenced by the appearance of the scar. The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the objectivity and validity of various methods for the assessment of scars.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

45 patients undergoing facial surgery were examined three months after surgery. Three maxillofacial surgeons evaluated the wounds in a blinded manner using a visual analog scale (VAS). The patients also used the VAS for evaluation of their own scar. The surface of the scars was also measured by optical profilometry. Finally, the colour of the scars was analysed using both the RGB colour model and the HSV colour model.

RESULTS

Interestingly, there was no significant correlation between the values of R (red) as assessed by the three surgeons. However, there was a very strong correlation between the values of H (hue) as assessed by the three raters. The appearance of the surface was more important in the patients' evaluation than in the raters' assessment.

CONCLUSION

The hue of a scar as measured in terms of the H value in the HSV colour model is an objective and reliable measure for assessing the cosmetic outcome of facial surgery.