INTRODUCTION

Surgical ligatures and sutures are the threads or strings specially prepared and sterilized for use in surgery. The term ligatures is mainly applied for those used in tying of blood vessels, whereas the term sutures is applied for those used in sewing tissues together.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

Sutures and ligatures have been used by surgeons from a very early period for the closing of wounds and for the control of hemorrhage. Abucasis, a famous physician of the Arabian school, who lived and wrote in 1105 B.C., speaks of the use of ligatures. They were used by Galen in the Alexandrian school in the first century B.C. and were introduced into Rome by Euelpistus shortly before the time of Celsus. Even before 200 A.D., the rabbis were familiar with the use of sutures for the closure of wounds and ligatures for control of hemorrhage. During the early sixteenth century, hemorrhage was mainly controlled by cautery. In 1564, Ambroise Paré practiced the use of ligatures.