Barbed Suture vs Smooth Suture for Vaginal Cuff Closure

November 28, 2016 updated by: Jon I. Einarsson, Brigham and Women's Hospital

Barbed Suture vs Smooth Suture for Vaginal Cuff Closure, a Randomized Trial

This study compares outcomes among patients having a total laparoscopic hysterectomy. This involves removing the uterus and cervix using a laparoscopic or keyhole technique. The top of the vagina is routinely sutured closed after this procedure and this study is comparing two different suture materials for this purpose. One suture material is a barbed suture that has the advantage of maintaining good tension and closure on the wound. The other is a standard smooth suture that is commonly used for this procedure. The investigators are comparing the time it takes to close the vaginal cuff, as well as bleeding after surgery and the healing of the top of the vagina.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Barbed suture has been used to close the vaginal vault for almost 3 years now, and a few preliminary studies report positive outcomes. Unfortunately, the retrospective nature of these studies may present outcomes in an overly positive light, since some of the patients may not be able to remember all the potential complications or problems they may have had in the immediate postoperative period (recall bias). The current standard of care for vaginal cuff closure appears to be to use Vicryl suture although practices vary widely.

The specific aim of this study is to evaluate whether the use of barbed suture facilitates the laparoscopic closure of the vaginal cuff during a total laparoscopic hysterectomy.

The inclusion criteria for our study include all patients who are planned for a total laparoscopic hysterectomy due to benign conditions such as symptomatic uterine fibroids, abnormal uterine bleeding, endometriosis and pelvic pain.

The laparoscopic hysterectomy will proceed as per routine. For vaginal cuff closure with barbed suture we will use a 0 polydioxanone (PDO) bidirectional barbed suture on a 36 mm half-circle taper point needle. For cuff closure with Vicryl, we plan to use 2/0 Vicryl with the vaginal cuff closure proceeding in a similar fashion as with the barbed suture. Regardless of suture material used it is important to obtain a full thickness bite with a 1 cm margin on the vagina mucosa on each bite.

Patients will be stratified to either closure by the attending or the resident or fellow under the supervision of the attending. The resident or fellow will have 15 minutes to complete the vaginal cuff closure. If they are not able to complete it within that time frame, the attending will take over and complete the vaginal cuff closure. This is to avoid adding excess operating time to the procedure due to having a trainee performing a portion of the procedure. Patients will also be asked to complete a short survey regarding dyspareunia as well as a standardized sexual function questionnaire (FSFI) prior to surgery and 3 months after surgery to evaluate if the use of barbed suture affects this in any way. Further we will also inquire about male dyspareunia before and after surgery for the same reason.

Patients will be examined at a postoperative visit 3 weeks after surgery and vaginal cuff granulation and any evidence of vaginal cuff infection or separation will be carefully examined and documented. Patients will be called 3 months after surgery to inquire about any dyspareunia, male dyspareunia, vaginal bleeding or readmissions to the hospital. We are interested in evaluating dyspareunia, since a concern has been raised that the use of barbed suture at the vaginal apex may result in dyspareunia and partner dyspareunia. Although we have not found this to be the case in our clinical experience we would like to evaluate this point, especially since the use of barbed suture for closing the vaginal cuff has become a common practice nationwide. Patients will be dismissed from the trial after the 3 month follow up.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
64

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Phase 4

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Massachusetts
      • Boston, Massachusetts, United States, 02115
        • Brigham and Women's Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

14 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

Female

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Patients having a total laparoscopic hysterectomy for benign conditions

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Malignancy

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Barbed
Vaginal cuff closure with barbed suture
Procedure: Closure of vaginal cuff
Closure of the vaginal cuff
Active Comparator: Smooth
Vaginal cuff closure with smooth suture
Procedure: Closure of vaginal cuff
Closure of the vaginal cuff

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Vaginal Cuff Closure Time
Time Frame: During the surgical procedure
Average time (measured in minutes)
During the surgical procedure

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Dyspareunia
Time Frame: Postoperative
Assessed preoperatively and up to 3 months postop
Postoperative

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Brigham and Women's Hospital

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
December 1, 2010

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
June 1, 2012

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
November 1, 2012

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
December 15, 2010

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
December 15, 2010

First Posted (Estimate)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
December 17, 2010

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
January 16, 2017

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
November 28, 2016

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
November 1, 2016

More Information

Terms related to this study

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 2010P001586

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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