Dry wound treatment

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The dry wound treatment and conventional or traditional wound treatment is the treatment of wounds using dry, sterile dressings . It is also known as traditional wound treatment and was the method of choice in the treatment of acute and chronic wounds until the 1960s . Today it is mainly used in the treatment of primarily healing injuries and surgical wounds that have been closed by sutures or other wound closure techniques. In exceptional cases, it is also used to treat other wounds (such as dry gangrene , superficial minor injuries).

historical box with gauze bandages from Hartmann

Goals of dry wound treatment

The dry wound dressing is supposed to absorb blood and wound secretion , protect the wound from the penetration of foreign bodies and pathogens, serve as a carrier for drugs and protect against mechanical loads. The development of anaerobic wound conditions should be avoided.

Dressings and wound dressings

The classic wound dressing consists of a sterile wound dressing made of dry tissues, such as cotton (gauze) or the usually cheaper non- woven compresses . Additional padding (e.g. made of cotton wool) is applied over this to pressure-sensitive areas. For heavily exuding wounds, combined absorbent compresses are used, which consist of several layers of material and have an absorbent core made of cellulose. Compresses are fixed with fixatives such as gauze bandages or self-adhesive material. Impregnated wound gauzes placed between the compress and the wound prevent sticking to the wound bed or the growth of new tissue into the compress (see section "Problems" below). Even first- aid dressings , the common household plasters, are products of dry wound treatment.

Problems and user errors

In order to avoid sticking and fusing of the applied tissue with the wound, dry dressings must be changed frequently. When removing dry compresses from the wound bed, fresh, newly formed tissue that has sprouted into the structure of the wound dressing is often removed, which slows down the healing process. This so-called wound peeling, which is also extremely painful for the patient, can be prevented by using impregnated wound gauzes. However, these too can stick to the wound bed - especially in the case of superficial wounds that do not exudate much. Its water-repellent surface makes it impossible to moisten it (to make it easier to remove it). Multiply folded wound gauze can hinder the drainage of wound exudate and increase the risk of infection through the formation of germ-friendly, moist chambers, as can soaked dressings that provide pathogens with a basis for settlement and growth.

Alternatives

There used to be a presumption that a wet wound would heal poorly. In addition, there was a lack of appropriate materials that would keep the wound moist at the same time but also prevent an anaerobic environment and the penetration of germs. Since the 1960s, following the publication of scientific work, including by G. F. Odland, dry wound treatment in the treatment of open, infected and secondary healing wounds has largely been replaced by moist wound treatment . Since then, the principle has been valid: dry wounds are treated dry, damp wounds with a damp cloth .

Notes and individual references

  1. ↑ Vasel-Biergans, Probst: Wound Care for Nursing - A Practice Book . 2nd edition, Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft, Stuttgart 2011 p. 95
  2. ↑ a b c Protz: Modern wound care - practical knowledge, standards and documentation. 7th edition, Urban and Fischer Verlag, Munich, 2014 p. 13
  3. ↑ Vasel-Biergans, Probst: Wound Care for Nursing - A Practice Book . 2nd edition, Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft, Stuttgart 2011, page 93
  4. ↑ Protz: Modern wound care - practical knowledge, standards and documentation. 7th edition, Urban and Fischer Verlag, Munich, 2014 p. 15
  5. ↑ Vasel-Biergans, Probst: Wound Care for Nursing - A Practice Book . 2nd edition, Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft, Stuttgart 2011 p. 236

literature

  • Anette Vasel-Biergans, Wiltrud Probst: Wound Care for Nursing - A Practice Book . 2nd edition, Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft, Stuttgart 2011, ISBN 978-3-8047-2798-4 .
  • Kerstin Protz: Modern wound care - practical knowledge, standards and documentation. 7th edition, Urban and Fischer Verlag, Munich, 2014, ISBN 978-3-437-27884-6