A wound is something that anyone can get at any time. Whether it’s from a cut, scrape, or bite, there are ways to treat the wounds quickly and efficiently. The nine essential steps for treating a wound are:
Wash Your Hands
First, make sure you are washing your hands thoroughly with soap and water. This keeps the wound clean from any harmful bacteria that could infect it if getting into contact with dirt or other debris.
Remove Any Debris
After washing your hands, use sterile tweezers to remove any debris that may have gotten into the wound. Removing this foreign material reduces the risk of infection and further damage to the skin around it.
Cleanse The Area Around The Wound
If you are dealing with a wound that an injury has caused, the wound will likely be surrounded by dirt. Disinfecting the area around the wound is crucial for successful wound treatment. Please wash your hands thoroughly before treating any injury and ensure that they are completely dry before beginning work on the wound itself.
Once the wound is clean, topical wound care products can be applied. There are many different wound healing products available in pharmacies and online that will help with wound closure by forming a protective barrier over it.
Apply A Moisture-Retaining Dressing
Once the wound has been cleaned, it is time to apply a proper wound dressing. This step in wound treatment aims to create an environment where the wound can heal itself as quickly and thoroughly as possible without further irritation or contamination from outside sources.
Apply Pressure
If necessary, apply pressure to stop bleeding using sterile gauze pads, clean cloths, towels, or even clothing items like shirts or socks. It’s essential not to use tissues because they absorb blood too quickly and cause more problems than solutions.
Use Antibiotics Ointment/Gauze Pads
Apply an antibiotic ointment to protect the skin around the wound by covering it with a gauze pad. If the cut is on an arm or leg, elevate it to reduce blood flow and prevent swelling from being trapped in your body.
Cover The Wound Area
Cover the cleaned site with a sterile dressing, ensuring that the surrounding skin is not damaged by tape or adhesive. Secure dressing with medical bandages if available; alternatively, use nonstick roller gauze and roll it firmly around the site for at least two turns. For more significant wounds, the over-the-counter plastic wrap may be used to secure dressings to large areas of broken skin without damaging tissue.
Check For Signs Of Infection
Redness or warmth at the site is often a sign of infection, and you should seek medical attention right away if either occurs after treatment for an open wound. Open wounds that are not treated properly can become infected with bacteria such as staphylococcus.
Bacteria And Wound Healing
Not everyone who gets an open wound will get infected with bacteria; however, it is always best to take precautions and prevent infections from occurring. If your body senses that there is some pathogen in the area where a cut or scrape has happened on your body, it initiates the process of wound healing. The first step in this process is to prevent bacteria from getting into your body and starting an infection.
Bacteria are everywhere around us, usually without causing harm because our immune system fights them off constantly. When you get a cut or scrape on your skin where there are no natural barriers between these bacteria and your body, your immune system will try to fight them off. Unfortunately, sometimes it cannot keep up with the infection caused by bacteria in a wound that occurs when you get injured.
In conclusion, don’t panic! Under no circumstances should you freak out if someone gets hurt or sustains an injury. Just follow these steps, and you’ll have your pet back on its feet in no time! It’s a natural response, but it will only make the situation worse.
Photo by Diana Polekhina
Mia Guerra
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