For patients who only have portal sites (small incisions), the sutures are completely internal and will dissolve without having to be clipped or removed.
For patients with larger incisions, there will be suture tails that will need to be clipped at 2 weeks post-op. There is a suture tail at the top and bottom of each incision. These suture tails can be exposed by peeling back the last couple of steri-strips on each end of the incision. The suture tails will be taped into the steri-strips and will look like fishing line sticking out of the skin. To cut the tail, simply put a little tension on the suture and cut it flush with the skin. There is no knot to worry about, and you don’t need to pull anything out. Once the tail is clipped, the remaining suture will stay in the skin and dissolve.