Catgut suture

Catgut suture is a surgical thread made of twisted strands of purified collagen taken from the small intestine of sheep, cattle or other domesticated ruminants, or from beef tendon, despite its name having nothing to do with cats. The body absorbs it naturally within about ninety days while it holds its strength for at least a week, which makes it useful for internal wounds and tissues that heal quickly, and it has been used in general surgery, eye surgery, orthopedic repair and gastrointestinal operations. It has largely been replaced by synthetic absorbable sutures in many countries, and some places have banned it outright over concerns about transmitting bovine spongiform encephalopathy, even though supplying herds are certified disease-free. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/