The suture material depicted is subject to degradation by enzymatic processes. When evaluating sutures, understanding their composition and mode of degradation is crucial. Most absorbable sutures, including those derived from natural sources, decompose as a result of enzymatic activity and hydrolysis. In the context of the available options:
Made of rabbit submucosa - This is incorrect, as the common absorbable suture materials are not typically made from rabbit submucosa.
Made of cat submucosa - This is also incorrect. While 'catgut' refers to sutures historically made from the submucosa of sheep or goat intestines, not from cats.
Not degraded - Incorrect, as absorbable sutures are designed to degrade over time within the body.
Degraded by enzymatic degradation - This is the correct statement. Many natural sutures undergo enzymatic degradation rather than synthetic processes.
In summary, the correct answer is that the suture material is degraded by enzymatic degradation.
