Baptist Health Wound Care Offers First Aid Advice

In the business world, to do something quickly is to "put a Band-Aid on the problem."

However, anyone who has walked down a drugstore aisle recently knows that choosing from the dozens of bandages available can take time. The advances in wound healing have made their way from laboratories, hospitals and medical supply companies to retail store shelves. This gives consumers a greater variety of products, but they must choose among them with very little guidance.

The experts at Baptist Health Wound Care offer these shopping tips to help assemble a first aid kit that will be ready when a minor injury occurs:

Over-the-counter bandages containing silver, a natural antibacterial, are great to have on hand.  These bandages and pre-applied antibiotic bandages can be used for moderately infected wounds where previously antibiotic ointment was applied.

Liquid bandages join familiar adhesive bandages as perfect choices to cover friction blisters caused by new shoes. 

Spray bandages form a clear film over cuts and abrasions.  These can be good for hard to cover body parts such as knees and elbows. They are not waterproof and shouldn't be used with an antibiotic that could loosen the adhesive. 

Keeping all non-infected wounds covered, or occluded, speeds healing and dressings should have the ability to remain on a wound for several days.  For example, hydro-colloid bandages contain particles that absorb the liquid in a wound and create a gel-like covering that keeps the wound moist and protected.

Butterfly tape or wound closure adhesive strips can be used for very small cuts to allow skin edges to stay together.

Scar-therapy bandages are useful, but are meant to be applied only after the wound has completely healed.

A kiss doesn't cost a thing and can make a cut or scrape feel better.  When bandaging children, remain calm and explain what you are doing.
 
If bleeding continues after 10 minutes of direct pressure or if wound edges gape open, medical treatment should be sought. In addition, for any wound that hasn't fully healed within 30 days or for a wound showing signs of infection, intervention from a medical professional is necessary.

 Baptist Health Wound Care treats both acute and chronic wounds and offers dressing options far beyond that of the drugstore shelf.  As a President's Circle Center of Excellence with an average heal result of 21 days, Baptist Health Wound Care works to learn why your wound is not healing and quickly get you back to your regular activities.