Post-Operative Surgical Wound Care - Essential Tips

1. Post-Operative Surgical Wound Care - Essential Tips Post-operative surgical wound care not only helps keep the wounds infection-free but also promotes wound healing. So, when you are back home after going through surgery, keep an eye on the cuts or incisions made by the surgeons to look for the signs of infection, swelling, or bleeding. It will decrease the chances of any medical complications in the future. Therefore, it is important to follow the instructions provided by surgical wound consult to reduce scarring and limit the risk of infection. Take a look at some surgical wound care tips at home: What Is A Surgical Wound? Also known as an incision, it is a cut made in your skin during surgery. It can be sewed, stapled, taped, or glued together. They can vary in size and location but with proper care, they can sooner back to the normal stage. How To Take Care Of Surgical Wounds At Home? Surgical wounds take time to heal as they heal from the bottom to the top. If a patient has undergone surgery and is taking care of them at home, here are a few things to be considered. Take a look: ● To keep surgical wounds infection-free, it is important to clean/wash your hands every time before & after touching the wounds. ● Inspection of surgical wounds must be conducted every day to find out signs of infection or red flags you are told to beware of by wound care at bedside. ● Look for the bleeding. If there is bleeding, apply direct pressure on the incision to stop the bleeding. Also, replace your bandage with clean, dry gauze or a suitable bandage. ● Patients with incisions should avoid wearing tight clothing to stop rubbing against the injury. ● Avoid scratching itchy incisions. Sometimes stapled wounds cause irritation but this is normal. You shouldn’t scratch them as it can make the condition worse. ● In case your incision is red, it could be a sign of infection. Though redness is normal, excess redness is a matter of concern. The patients should call their wound care doctors if the redness is getting worse or spreading to the surrounding area.

2. ● If you are heading outside, the scar should be properly covered with tape or sunscreen for the initial six months after the surgery has been performed. Instructions Provided By Wound Care Treatment California After surgery, there are a few wound care instructions that will be provided by your healthcare providers to enable patients to take good care of injuries at home. Here they are as follows: Time To Remove Bandage Some incisions require dressings to be changed the day after the surgery while most wounds don’t require a change of dressing. It depends on the severity of the surgery and the incision made. The patients should not do this by themselves otherwise it can create unwanted complications. Keeping Wound Site Dry This is essential, especially for the first 24 hours of the incision made. Doctors may ask patients to avoid showering or taking bath for a few days. Instead, a sponge bath is recommended.

3. However, patients can take a bath on the second day but gently towel-dry the wound site after washing. Removal of stitches Patients aren’t allowed to remove their stitches on their own, rather a surgical wound consult is required. Generally, the stitches are removed within 3 days to 3 weeks after surgery depending on the location, size, and severity of the wound site. Your doctor may apply skin tape to provide additional support to the wound. This tape can be removed in 3 to 7 days. Change of Dressing Patients should carefully follow the instructions provided by their healthcare providers when it comes to changing their dressing. Make sure your hands are cleaned. Put on clean gloves and remove the old dressing. Don’t apply any cream over the dressing unless told by the doctor. Place the dressing over the wound and tape it carefully. Wash hands thoroughly. Limited Movement Patients with surgical wounds are advised to limit their movements or avoid activities that require heavy body movement. For example, climbing stairs, exercising or lifting weights, etc. They need to consult with their doctors before performing any activity otherwise the incisions can pull apart. When To Call The Doctor? It is important to call the doctor if: ● Bleeding doesn’t stop with pressure applied ● There is any sign of infection ● Pain gets worse ● Extreme redness or swelling ● Bad odor ● High-fever etc. Additionally, if you have any doubts or queries about your incisions or surgical wounds, you need to call your doctor. When a patient is taking care of any incisions or surgical injuries at home, he/she should adhere to their wound care doctors otherwise it could lead to complications.

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