How To Care for Superficial Wounds

The skin is our first and most effective line of defense against illness. When our skin is damaged due to a scrape, cut, puncture or burn we are vulnerable to infection. Correct wound care is essential to minimise healing time and avoid infection and worsening of the area of damaged skin. This article will cover basic steps to care for minor skin injuries and thereby promote healing. Good healing decreases the pain associated with injuries to the skin and reduces the size and appearance of scarring afterward.

Cuts

1. Control bleeding. Use one or more of the following strategies.
2. Apply direct pressure to the wound or to the artery within the closest proximity of the wound with your hand and a clean cloth.  
3. If possible elevate the bleeding part above the level of the heart to slow the flow of blood.
4. Cool the affected area with an face cloth dampened with cold water ONCE THE AREA HAS STOPPED BLEEDING (see tips). The lowered temperature slows the flow of blood to the area.
5. Apply pressure to blood vessels just above (closer to the heart than) the broken skin to slow the blood flow. It is important to remember to NOT absolutely cut off circulation by pressing on the artery with too much force. This gives your body's natural clotting mechanism time to take hold. Look at your body and identify good pressure points where blood vessels are close to the skin surface, do not confuse them for veins.
6. If the wound is a burn, your first step is to halt the burning process. In the case of a chemical burn, you must neutralize the burning chemical. Please see Tips for a link to useful information about burns. Place the affected part under cool running water (warm water for less harsh chemicals or when there is chemical exposure to the eyes) for approxamitely 15 minutes or until thouroughly flushed.
7. Wash the affected area. Use regular soap and cool water. Remove all dirt and debris from on/around the wound. It may be necessary to scrub the wound bed gently to remove all particles of debris. You may also flush the wound with clean water to remove debris or irrigate with a saline solution if available.
8. The cleaned wound will begin to bleed again. Apply direct pressure with a clean cloth or gauze pad.
9. Look at the wound. Is it a cut, puncture, burn, or scrape? How serious is the wound; can you treat it at home or should you go to your local emergency room? Are there still imbedded particles of foreign matter in the wound bed? How can you cover the wound? How you care for it depends on what kind of wound you are dealing with.
10. Apply a thin layer of an anti-infective ointment to the skin around the cut (such as Amerigel or Neosporin). Carefully bring the edges of the wound together and secure with a dressing.
11. Change the dressing if it becomes wet or soiled. Change the dressing if it becomes wet with perspiration or bodily fluids.
12. Change the dressing at least once a day; wash the area gently with soap and water, apply the ointment and cover. Take care not to pull the wound apart.
13. Once you notice a scab is forming, leave the wound open to air, but take care to keep it clean as possible at all times. You may also want to apply a "liquid bandage"/regular bandage (such as a Band-Aid) at this point for added protection or to proceed to apply ointment to the affected area.

Punctures

1. Soak the affected area in hydrogen peroxide. This will help draw out any fine particles deep in the wound and also acts as an anti-infective. Do this a couple times a day for the first day or two. If it is not getting better or is getting worse, take it to your doctor.
2. Cover with a clean dry dressing, sterile if possible. Change after each soaking.
3. By day two or three the wound should be "clean" and healing well. Apply a liquid bandage for added protection.

Don't use neosporin on puncture wounds! It even says so.

Scrapes

1. These are pretty much best left open to air once they are washed thoroughly. Bathe the area a couple times a day with hydrogen peroxide. Spray with Bactine.
2. If you notice the area becomming reddened and tender, or if there is yellow or green drainage from the wound, coat with anti infective ointment and cover with a clean dry dressing.
3. Once you notice scabbing, leave open to air. Apply a liquid bandage for added protection.

Burns

These instructions are for minor burns ONLY. (first degree and small second degree) Please see Tips for a link to useful information about burns.

1. Flush the burn with cool (not hot or cold) running water. If you are not near water, apply cool compresses to the area with gauze. Keep water on the area for 10-15 minutes, then remove for a couple minutes then reapply. This procedure stops the burning process. Do not apply ice, as it is cold enough to increase tissue damage rather than reduce it.

Applying aloe vera directly to a burn prevents a blister from forming. If you have an aloe vera plant handy, cut off a small piece from the plant, slice the piece to expose the inner part of the plant, and gently apply it to the burn.

1. Leave a burn open to air and keep area clean. Spray with Bactine.

A blister will form within 24 hours if you have a second degree burn. If a blister forms, try to keep it intact. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO BREAK THE BLISTER, AS THIS CAN BE HARMFUL. Applying a liquid bandage to a blister can toughen the skin and decrease the chance of it breaking.

1. • If the blister opens, you now have an open wound. Wash the area gently with soap and water.
2. Bring the edges of the skin together (the empty blister is a better protection for the underlying burned skin). Apply liquid bandage and cover with a clean dry dressing.
3. If redness, tenderness or drainage developes, apply anti-infective ointment and cover the burn with clean gauze to protect it while it heals. Change daily.
4. Contact a physician if the burn gets worse, doesn't appear to ease, or develops severe blisters or discoloration of any kind.
5. Drink lots of water until your burn heals completely. The extra moisture will help to soothe and heal the burn.
6. Consider taking vitamin supplements that will help your skin as it heals from the burn. Good ones to consider include vitamin A, C, E, Echinacea, St. John's Wart and/or zinc.
7. Take an anti-inflammatory drug like aspirin or Motrin for pain that isn't otherwise soothed away.

Naturally Soothing Burns:

In studies of quick and easy treatments to soothe mild burns, scientists have found that honey has antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties that may prevent infection and promote healing. One study conducted in 2006 found that small, non-serious burns healed faster when treated with gauze and a dash of honey, on average, than those treated with antibiotic creams and other dressings. A separate report published earlier found similar results.

The tried and true method for healing small burns remains applying a wet compress, immersing it in cool water and then covering the area with a sterile, non-adhesive bandage. But for those who prefer using natural remedies to soothe discomfort, honey may be a decent option.

Other natural products that can soothe a minor burn are:

Mustard, which acts as both a pain reliever and blister reducer.

A potato slice: rubbing the slice onto the burned area neutralizes the burn and helps prevent scarring.

Egg whites can take away the pain and also prevent marks and scars. Other items to try include chamomile tea, corn starch, lavender oil, mint, and oatmeal.

Tips

• Wash your hands thouroughly with ordinary hand soap and water (preferably warm) before touching the wound. Wear clean medical gloves if you have them when treating others. Then, after removing the gloves, wash your hands again. Dispose of the gloves by sealing them in a bag (plastic zip-locks work well) and discarding them where they can not be handled by others.
• Clean the wound and change the dressing at least once a day, or if it becomes soiled or wet.
• Pack a portable wound care kit in a ziplock bag: A small bottled water, bactine or neosporin, a handful of gauze pads or clean cloths (wash cloths), a few band aids, a roll of wide silk tape, a roll of gauze and my favorite: Second Skin liquid barrier.
• A good protective device for wound dressings on the hand is to just wear a rubber glove. The glove will help keep the dressing clean and dry.
• Tetanus is a concern, if you haven't gotten a tetanus shot, get one.
• To make an ice pack: fill a ziplock sandwich bag about 1/2 full of (preferably crushed) ice and seal. Wrap in a dish towel or pillow case. Ice packs are used to cool burns, reduce swelling and bruising after an impact injury, and to slow bleeding initially, in the case of an open wound. Remove the cold pack every 10-15 minutes or if it becomes uncomfortable and allow the skin to warm up. This protects you from freezing and further damageing the skin.
• Burns: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burn_%28injury%29
• Signs and symptoms of infection include: Redness and tenderness to the affected area, yellow or green opaque drainage, elevated body temperature, cold sweats, chills.
• Learn about First Aid before you need it. Be prepared.
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emergency_bleeding_control

Warnings

• If in doubt, seek medical attention.
• If infection develops that is not resolved quickly with anti-infective ointment, seek medical attention.
• If the wound is bleeding profusely, or blood is pulsating from the wound, do not waste time trying to clean the wound. Control bleeding first, then seek prompt medical attention.
• Do NOT apply hydrogen peroxide, alcohol, iodine, betadine, or any other "disinfectant" to an open wound unless specifically instructed to do so by a physician. These chemicals are very irritating, can destroy newly growing cells, and may increase, rather than reduce, the potential for complications in healing. These chemicals have no place in a home or car first aid kit.
• Keep pressure on the wound until bleeding stops, but do not cut off circulation to the area completely.
• If you have a chemical burn, or if you feel the burn is deeper than just the first layer of skin, seek medical attention.
• This instruction is for minor wounds only.
• - Anti-infective ointment such as Neosporin
• - Liquid bandage such as Second Skin or Skin Prep
• - Gauze pads or clean cloths
• - Rolled gauze
• - Silk tape
• - Band aids
• - Clean water
• - Medical rubber or vinyl gloves
• - Also see natural care for burns