Dressings Bandages
When dressing covers an open wound-it
touches the wound. Whenever possible,
a dressing should be sterile. If a
sterile dressing is not available, use
a clean cloth (handkerchief,
washcloth, towel), larger than the
wound, thick, soft, and compressible
so pressure is evenly distributed over
the wound,lint - free
The purpose of a dressing is to:
. control bleeding
. prevent infection and contamination
. absorb blood and fluid drainage
. protect the wound from further
injury
Types of Dressings
. Gauze pads are used for small wounds
They come in separately wrapped
packages of vari0us sizes (eg, 2
inches square; 4 inches square) and
are sterile, unless the package is
broken. Some gauze pads have a special
coating to keep them from sticking to
the wound and are especially helpful
for burns or wounds secreting fluids.
. Adhesive strips are used for small
cuts and abrasions and are a
combination of both a sterile dressing
and a bandage . Trauma dressings are
made of large, thick, absorbent,
sterile materials . Individually
wrapped sanitary napkins can serve
because of their bulk and absorbency,
but they usually are not sterile.
Applying a Sterile Dressing
Wear medical exam gloves whenever
possible. Use a dressing large enough
to extend beyond the wound's edges.
Hold the dressing by a corner. Place
the dressing directly over the wound.
Do not slide it on. Cover the dressing
with one of the types of band ages
referenced below.
DRESSINGS AND
BANDAGES
Gauze pads
Adhesive
strips
Trauma
dressings
DO NOT
touch any part of the wound or an
of the dressings that will be in
contact with wound.
Bandages
A bandage can be used to:
. hold a dressing in place over an
open wound
. apply direct pressure over a
dressing to control bleeding
. prevent or reduce swelling
. provide support and stability for an
extremit joint
A
bandage should be clean but need not
be sterile
DO NOT
bandage so tightly as to restrict the
circulation. Always check the
extremity's joint. If you cannot feel
the pulse, loosen the bandage
DO NOT
bandage so loosely that the dressing
will slip. This is the most common
bandaging error. Bandages tend to
stretch after a short time.
DO NOT
cover fingers or toes unless they all
injured. They need to be observed for
color changes due to impaired
circulation.
Signs that a
bandage is too tight:
. blue tinge to the fingernails or
toenails
. blue or pale skin color
. tingling or loss of sensation
. coldness of the extremity
. inability to move the fingers or
toes
Types of
Bandages
There are four basic types of
bandages:
. Roller bandages come in various
widths ,lengths and types of material.
For best results, use different
widths for different body areas
. 1-inch width for fingers
. 2-inch width for wrists, hands, feet
. 3-inch width for elbows, arms
. 4- or 6-inch width for ankles,
knees, legs
These can be
self-adhering, conforming
bandages
that come as rolls of
slightly elastic, gauzelike material
in various widths. They can also be
gauze rollers made of cotton. These
are rigid and nonelastic. Another type
of roller bandage is an elastic roller
bandage
used for compression on sprains,
strains, and contusions. Elastic
bandages are not usually applied over
dressings to cover a wound.
When commercial roller bandages are
unavailable, you can improvise
bandages from neckties or strips of
cloth torn from a sheet or other
similar material.
Triangular bandages
are available commercially or can be
made from a 36- to 40-inch square of
preshrunk cotton muslin material that
is cut diagonally from corner to
corner to produce two triangular
pieces of cloth. The longest side is
called the base; the corner directly
across from the base is the point, the
other two corners are called ends. A
triangular bandage may be applied two
ways:
. As a cravat (folded triangular
bandage). The point is folded to the
center of the base and folded in half
again from the top to the base
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