From the Research
Yes, absorbable sutures can generally get wet in the shower after the first 24-48 hours following your procedure. Most surgeons recommend keeping the wound completely dry for the first day or two to allow initial healing to begin. After this initial period, gentle showering is usually permitted, allowing water to run over the wound, but avoid soaking the area in a bath, pool, or hot tub until the wound is fully healed (typically 1-2 weeks). When showering, don't scrub the wound or use harsh soaps directly on the suture line. After showering, pat the area dry gently with a clean towel rather than rubbing it. Absorbable sutures are designed to gradually break down in the body through a process called hydrolysis, where tissue fluids slowly dissolve the suture material. Brief exposure to shower water won't significantly accelerate this process or increase infection risk in a healing wound, as supported by studies such as 1, which discusses the role of antimicrobial sutures in preventing surgical site infection, implying that absorbable sutures can be safely exposed to water without significantly increasing infection risk. However, if your surgeon provided specific instructions that differ from this general guidance, always follow their recommendations as they may have considerations specific to your procedure or medical situation.
Some key points to consider when showering with absorbable sutures include:
- Keeping the wound dry for the first 24-48 hours
- Avoiding soaking the wound in water until it is fully healed
- Gently patting the area dry after showering
- Avoiding harsh soaps or scrubbing the wound
- Following specific instructions from your surgeon, if provided, as they may have considerations specific to your procedure or medical situation, and taking into account the findings of studies such as 2, which compared the safety of classic interrupted nonabsorbable skin closure to continuous intradermal absorbable sutures in appendectomy wounds.
It's also important to note that the use of antimicrobial sutures, as discussed in 1, may help in reducing the risk of surgical site infection, but this does not necessarily affect the general guidance on showering with absorbable sutures. Additionally, the process of hydrolysis, by which absorbable sutures break down, is not significantly accelerated by brief exposure to shower water, as implied by the study 3 on the influence of infection on the hydrolysis and decrease in the tensile strength of sutures.