B2B Blog

An echocardiogram is a test that uses high frequency sound waves to make pictures of your heart. His common test allows your doctor to see your heart beating and pumping blood. Your doctor can use the images from an echocardiogram to identify heart disease. Echo also can pinpoint areas of heart muscle that aren’t contracting well because of poor blood flow or injury from a previous heart attack.

Doppler ultrasound shows how well blood flows through your heart’s chambers and valves. An echocardiogram uses ultrasound, or harmless sound waves, to quickly and efficiently obtain valuable information about your heart. Our doctors regularly use an echocardiogram, or echo, when they have questions about the size, shape, and performance of your heart and its valves.

Types of Echocardiography

There are several types of these tests.

Transthoracic echocardiogram

A transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) is the most common noninvasive type of echocardiogram, which uses high frequency soundwaves (ultrasound) to create a moving picture of your heart through the chest wall.

This test is used to examine suspected problems with the valves or chambers of the heart, as well as the heart’s ability to pump blood. 

Transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE)

A transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE) uses echocardiography to assess the structure and function of the heart. During the procedure, a transducer sends out ultrasonic sound waves. Being overweight or having certain lung diseases can interfere with images of the heart when the transducer is placed on the chest wall.

Stress echocardiogram

Stress echocardiography is a test that uses ultrasound imaging to show how well your heart muscle is working to pump blood to your body. It is most often used to detect a decrease in blood flow to the heart from narrowing in the coronary arteries.

Intravascular ultrasound

Intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) uses a transducer or probe to generate sound waves and produce images of blood vessels.

Benefits of Echocardiography

Once the technician has obtained the images, it usually takes 20 to 30 minutes to perform the measurement. If you have a transesophageal echo, you may be watched for a few hours at the doctor’s office or hospital after the test. Your throat might be sore for a few hours after the test.  These parts include the heart valves, the septum, and the walls of the heart chambers. Doppler ultrasound shows the movement of blood through your heart. This will solve this problems including:

• Pumping strength
• Changes in your heart size
• Damage to the heart muscle
• Valve problems
• Heart defect

After the Echocardiography

You usually can go back to your normal activities right after having echocardiography. If your echocardiogram is normal, no further testing may be needed. If the results are concerning, you may be referred to a doctor trained in heart conditions for more tests.

Your doctor will talk with you after looking at your echo pictures and discuss what the pictures show. The doctor will explain the procedure and offer you the opportunity to ask questions about the procedure. Generally, no prior preparation, such as fasting or sedation, is required. The results may reveal abnormalities such as:

• damage to the heart muscle
• valve problems
• problems with pumping function
• Determine the need for more tests
• Diagnose heart problems

Risk of Echocardiography

Echocardiography has no risks. You may feel some discomfort from the transducer being held very firmly against your chest. The firmness is necessary to produce the best images of your heart.

Reference

Arrhythmias occur when the electrical signals that coordinate heartbeats are not working correctly. Your heartbeats don’t work properly, causing your heart to beat too fast, too slow or irregularly.  When the heart beats faster than normal, it is called tachycardia. When the heart beats too slowly, it is called bradycardia. If you feel something unusual happening with your heartbeat, get medical help right away so doctors can find out why it’s happening and what you need to do about it.

Symptoms of Arrhythmia

Arrhythmias may not cause any signs or symptoms. In fact, your doctor might find you have an arrhythmia before you do, during a routine examination. When arrhythmias last long enough to affect how well the heart works, more serious symptoms may develop:

Dizziness

Dizziness is the feeling of being lightheaded, woozy, or unbalanced. It affects the sensory organs, specifically the eyes and ears, so it can sometimes cause fainting. Dizziness isn’t a disease, but rather a symptom of various disorders.

A fluttering in your chest

Heart palpitations are feelings of having a fast-beating, fluttering or pounding heart. Stress, exercise, medication or, rarely, a medical condition can trigger them.

Fatigue or weakness

Asthenia, also known as weakness, is the feeling of body fatigue or tiredness. A person experiencing weakness may not be able to move a certain part of their body properly. Asthenia is best described as a lack of energy to move certain muscles or even all muscles in the body.

Shortness of breath

Shortness of breath is a common symptom. It may be related to serious diseases, or it could be a result of being out of shape physically. Your health care provider should assess whether shortness of breath is treatable with lifestyle changes, such as quitting smoking or losing weight.

Types of Arrhythmia

Atrial fibrillation

Atrial fibrillation is a quivering or irregular heartbeat that can lead to blood clots, stroke, heart failure and other heart-related complications. Atrial fibrillation Signs include dizziness, weakness, and fatigue. Treatment involves medication and lifestyle changes, and sometimes procedures such as cardioversion, ablation, pacemakers, or surgery.

Atrial flutter

Atrial flutter is a problem with the way your heart beats. Such problems, whether in the rhythm or speed of the heartbeat, are known as arrhythmias. This causes the heart to beat in a fast, regular rhythm. It produces feelings like near-fainting, rapid heartbeats, mild shortness of breath, and fatigue.

Supraventricular tachycardia

Supraventricular tachycardia is defined as an abnormally rapid heart rhythm having an electropathologic substrate emerging. It’s a broad term that includes many forms of heart rhythm problems that originate above the ventricles in the atria or AV node.

A normal resting heart rate is 60 to 100 beats per minute. But with SVT your heart rate suddenly goes above 100bpm. This can happen when you’re resting or doing exercise.

Ventricular tachycardia

Ventricular tachycardia is a fast, abnormal heart rate. It starts in your heart’s lower chambers, called the ventricles. A healthy heart normally beats about 60 to 100 times a minute at rest. In ventricular tachycardia, the heart beats faster than normal, usually 100 or more beats a minute.  

The rapid heartbeat doesn’t give your heart enough time to fill with blood before it contracts again. This can affect blood flow to the rest of your body.

Ventricular fibrillation

Ventricular fibrillation is considered the most serious cardiac rhythm disturbance. This causes pumping chambers in your heart to quiver uselessly, instead of pumping blood. Sometimes triggered by a heart attack, ventricular fibrillation causes your blood pressure to plummet, cutting off blood supply to your vital organs. It causes your heart to beat quickly and out of rhythm.

Long QT syndrome

Long QT syndrome is a congenital disorder characterized by a prolongation of the QT interval on electrocardiograms and a propensity to ventricular tachyarrhythmia’s, which may lead to syncope, cardiac arrest, or sudden death. It is typically characterized by a prolongation of the QT interval on the ECG and by the occurrence of syncope or cardiac arrest, mainly precipitated by emotional or physical stress.

Reference

Cardiology is a branch of medicine that concerns diseases and disorders of the heart, which may range from congenital defects through to acquire heart diseases such as coronary artery disease and congestive heart failure. A person with heart disease or cardiovascular disease may be referred to a cardiologist.

Subspecialties of the cardiology field include cardiac electrophysiology, echocardiography, interventional cardiology and nuclear cardiology.  You might also visit a cardiologist so you can learn about your risk factors for heart disease and find out what measures you can take for better heart health. Texas Heart Institute cardiologists are listed in the professional staff directory.

Benefits of Cardiology

Cardiologists provide health care services that significantly affect patient care and treatment success. However, they do not perform surgical procedures like cardiac surgeons and other surgeons do.

As a cardiologist, you will be specializing in the diagnosis, prevention and the treatment of heart conditions. Although this can be quite a stressful role, it also comes with a range of fantastic benefits that will definitely encourage you to take up the profession. Receiving treatment from a cardiologist or other heart specialist offers several advantages over treatment from a general practitioner or internist.

When you need a Cardiology

If a person has symptoms of a heart condition, their physician may refer them to a cardiologist. Sometimes heart murmurs or ECG changes need the evaluation of a cardiologist. You may see a cardiologist if you have symptoms of heart or blood vessel problems. These may include:

Shortness of breath

It may seem as though you’re running short on oxygen. It may be more difficult to inhale and exhale. Sometimes you might be compelled to draw a breath before you’ve even finished the last exhale.  Your heart and lungs are involved in transporting oxygen to your tissues and removing carbon dioxide, and problems with either of these processes affect your breathing.

Dizziness

Dizziness that creates the false sense that you or your surroundings are spinning or moving is called vertigo. Dizziness is the feeling of being lightheaded, woozy, or unbalanced. It affects the sensory organs, specifically the eyes and ears, so it can sometimes cause fainting. Dizziness isn’t a disease, but rather a symptom of various disorders and it can be dangerous if it makes you fall.

Fainting

Fainting may be caused by a variety of medications, diseases, and conditions, but it isn’t caused by a head injury, which is considered a concussion. This usually occurs due to a lack of oxygen reaching the brain. Fainting, also called syncope is a sudden, brief loss of consciousness and posture caused by decreased blood flow to the brain.

Chest pain

Chest pain appears in many forms, ranging from a sharp stab to a dull ache. Sometimes chest pain feels crushing or burning. Chest pain is one of the most common reasons that people visit the emergency room. Some of these conditions are serious and life threatening. Others are not. The most life-threatening causes involve the heart or lungs. Because chest pain can indicate a serious problem, it’s important to seek immediate medical help.

Fluttering feelings in your chest

Palpitations make you feel like your heart is beating too hard or too fast, skipping a beat, or fluttering. This fleeting feeling like your heart is fluttering is a called a heart palpitation, and most of the time it’s not cause for concern.  However, that’s not to say that you should ignore them completely.

Rarely, they could be a sign of a more serious condition like AFib. Knowing when to worry about heart palpitations can help you catch certain conditions early so that you can seek treatment.

Reference

Cardiac ablation is a procedure that can correct heart rhythm problems. Ablation is a procedure used to treat an irregular heart rhythm is called arrhythmia that starts in the heart’s upper chambers.  Cardiac ablation can also treat atrial fibrillation, a type of irregular heartbeat. If this is the case, your doctor might call it atrial fibrillation ablation. During the procedure, small wires called electrodes are placed inside your heart to measure your heart’s electrical activity. When the source of the problem is found, the tissue causing the problem is destroyed.

How Ablation is work

Each beat of your heart is triggered by an electrical impulse normally generated from special cells in the upper right chamber of your heart. The most common problems result from the use of the catheters long, thin tubes doctors insert into your arteries or veins.

Inserting the tubes can occasionally damage your blood vessel or cause bleeding or infection. These problems are rare. The result is scar tissue that stops the firing pathway of the faulty signals. This technique takes less time than heat ablation and may have similar risks and complications.

Types of Cardiac Ablation

There are have some different types of cardiac ablation. They are;

• Atrial flutter ablation
• Pulmonary vein isolation
• SVT ablation
• Ventricular tachycardia ablation

Atrial flutter ablation

Atrial flutter ablation is a procedure to create scar tissue within the right upper chamber of the heart in order to block the electrical signals that cause a fluttering heartbeat, which is works scarring or destroying tissue in your heart to disrupt faulty electrical signals causing the arrhythmia.

Atrial flutter ablation can be utilized as an initial rhythm control strategy instead of antiarrhythmic drugs since this procedure is low risk with a high success rate, unlike that of atrial fibrillation where success rates vary and there is a higher complication risk.

Pulmonary vein isolation

Pulmonary vein isolation is a type of cardiac ablation. Cardiac ablation works by scarring or destroying tissue in your heart that triggers an abnormal heart rhythm. Atrial fibrillation is an abnormal heart rhythm that originates in the top chambers of the heart.

In many patients with atrial fibrillation, the left atrium is stretched, which distorts the electrical connections between the heart and the pulmonary veins. Pulmonary vein isolation is used to reduce signs and symptoms and improve quality of life for people living with atrial fibrillation.

SVT ablation

Catheter ablation is a procedure that uses radiofrequency energy to destroy a small area of heart tissue that is causing rapid and irregular heartbeats. To uses a narrow plastic tube, or catheter, to kill cells responsible for the heart rhythm problems caused by supraventricular tachycardia.

SVT ablation may restore a normal heart rhythm, which may reduce your symptoms and improve your quality of life.

Ventricular tachycardia ablation

Ventricular tachycardia is an abnormal rapid heart rhythm originating from the lower pumping chambers of the heart. It is a procedure to eliminate the areas of the heart where erratic electrical signals arise that can cause your heart to beat ineffectively. Implantable cardioverter-defibrillators provide mortality benefit and are therefore indicated for secondary prevention in patients with sustained VT, but they do not reduce arrhythmia burden.

Reference

A non-healing surgical wound can occur after surgery when a wound caused by an incision doesn’t heal as expected. This is usually caused by infection – a rare but serious complication.

Causes of poor wound-healing depend on the type and location of the procedure, health condition and other factors. To correctly classify the cleanliness and condition of wounds, the CDC has established classification definitions composed of four classes of wound statuses.

Risk Factors for Surgical Wound Complications

Two common complications of surgical wounds are infections and wound dehiscence. As such, the following signs should be looked out for in the post-operative wound review: fever, haematoma, seroma, separation of wound edges and purulent discharge from the wound.

If wound infection is suspected, active management should be considered. In the first instance, wound swabs for culture and sensitivity should be taken. Next, empirical antibiotic therapy can be commenced on the basis of the suspected pathogen .

Antibiotic therapy should be subsequently tailored once the offending pathogen and its sensitivity have been identified. Debridement of non-viable and infected tissue is another effective method of treating and preventing further extension.

Wounds with equivocal signs do not require immediate antibiotic therapy but should be closely and regularly monitored for any progression of signs.

The CDC classification system is used for surgical wound documentation and involves the patient’s risk for infection and complications.

Any condition that decreases effectiveness of host defenses is a risk factor for developing surgical wound complications. The following list includes conditions that are known to affect surgical wound complication rate:

Immunocompromised state:

Autoimmune disease such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus; cancer; long-term corticosteroid therapy; or any patient receiving chemotherapeutic agents or medications that dampen immune response.

Altered states of perfusion:

Chronic respiratory conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, vascular disorders including peripheral vascular disease, hypertension or hypotension, coagulopathy, smoking

Functional status:

Dependent status, generalized debility or immobility predisposing the patient to skin breakdown, affecting self-care capacity, including ability to obtain adequate nutrients.

Conclusion

Optimal management of surgical wounds is an important part of post-operative recovery and health care professionals should monitor the process of acute wound healing, prevent wound complications and treat appropriately if complications arise.

The key elements of post-operative wound management include timely review of the wound, appropriate cleansing and dressing, and early recognition and intervention of wound complications.

Treatment Reference

A non-healing surgical wound can occur after surgery when a wound caused by an incision doesn’t heal as expected. This is usually caused by infection – a rare but serious complication.

Non-healing or chronic wounds can become a major health risk, especially for older people and those who have additional health conditions. That’s why a coordinated effort to evaluate and treat wounds is so important. 

Factors such as advanced age, poor circulation, diabetes, and other conditions can interfere with the healing process. Wounds that won’t heal can result in pain, fear, and limited mobility—and this can impair your day-to-day enjoyment of life.

Symptoms of Non-healing surgical wound

Symptoms of a non-healing surgical wound depend on its location and type. Your surgeon and care team will know the normal healing process and timeframe.

Symptoms of infection include:

Fever

Fever is also known as hyperthermia, pyrexia, or elevated temperature. It describes a body temperature that’s higher than normal. Fever can affect children and adults.Normal body temperature may also fluctuate depending on the time of day. It tends to be lower in the morning and higher in the late afternoon and evening.

The average normal body temperature is 98.6° Fahrenheit (or 37° Celsius). When you or your child’s temperature rises a few degrees above normal, it’s a sign that the body is healthy and fighting infection. In most cases, that’s a good thing.

Pus or drainage

Pus is a thick fluid containing dead tissue, cells, and bacteria. Your body often produces it when it’s fighting off an infection, especially infections caused by bacteria. When the body detects an infection, it sends neutrophils, a type of white blood cell, to destroy the fungi or bacteria. During this process, some of the neutrophils and tissue surrounding the infected area will die.

Increased pain and redness

Some redness is normal at the wound site, but it should diminish over time. However, if your surgical incision or wound continues to be red or exhibit radiating streaks known as lymphangitis, this is a warning sign of a wound infection.

Initially, wounds will appear red due to the natural inflammatory process of healing, but that redness should gradually decrease in approximately 5-7 days. Redness around the wound that continues to expand and worsen is a sign of wound infection. 

Wound feels hot

A wound infection occurs when germs, such as bacteria, grow within the damaged skin of a wound. Symptoms can include increasing pain, swelling, and redness.

When an infection develops in a wound or incision, the body sends infection-fighting blood cells to the location. This may make your wound or incision feel warm to the touch. 

Treatment of Non healing wound

There is having some treatment of non-healing wound. They are;

• Cleaning skin
• Wound irrigation (gently spraying with a water solution)
• Frequent surgical-dressing changes and wound inspection
• Medication to prevent infection and relieve pain
• Debridement (removing injured or dead tissue)
• Vacuum-assisted closure (drains blood or fluid)
• Hyperbaric oxygen therapy 
• Skin or tissue grafting
• Physical therapy and rehabilitation
• Education and counseling about wound care, diet and nutrition, and home care
• Social services, including resources and support for coping with chronic illness

Treatment Reference

 

Fungal infections can affect any part of the body. Fungi are normally present in and on the body alongside various bacteria. But when a fungus begins to overgrow, you can get an infection.

Fungi that are already present in or on your body can cause nail infections. If you have come in contact with someone else who has a fungal infection, you may have contracted it as well. Fungal infections affect toenails more commonly than fingernails, likely because your toes are usually confined to shoes, where they’re in a warm, moist environment.

Treatment for Ingrown Toenail

Fungal nail infections can be difficult to treat. Talk with your doctor if self-care strategies and over-the-counter products haven’t helped.

Treatment depends on the severity of your condition and the type of fungus causing it. It can take months to see results. And even if your nail condition improves, repeat infections are common.

Medications

Doctor may prescribe antifungal drugs that you take orally or apply to the nail. In some situations, it helps to combine oral and topical antifungal therapies.

Oral antifungal drugs. 

These drugs are often the first choice because they clear the infection more quickly than do topical drugs. Options include terbinafine and itraconazole. These drugs help a new nail grow free of infection, slowly replacing the infected part.

The FDA has approved the following systemic (works throughout the body) medicines to treat nail fungus:

Medicated nail polish. 

Doctor may prescribe an antifungal nail polish called ciclopirox. You paint it on your infected nails and surrounding skin once a day. After seven days, you wipe the piled-on layers clean with alcohol and begin fresh applications. You may need to use this type of nail polish daily for almost a year.

 The Food and Drug Administration has approved the following medicines that you apply to the nail to treat nail fungus:

• Amorolfine
• Ciclopirox
• Efinaconazole
• Tavaborole

Medicated nail cream. 

Doctor may prescribe an antifungal cream, which you rub into your infected nails after soaking. These creams may work better if you first thin the nails. This helps the medication get through the hard nail surface to the underlying fungus.

To thin nails, you apply a nonprescription lotion containing urea. Or your doctor may thin the surface of the nail with a file or other tool.

Nail removal: 

If you have a severe infection or other treatments just don’t work, your dermatologist may recommend removing the nail(s) to get rid of the infection. Your dermatologist will use one of the following techniques to remove the nail:

• Nonsurgical nail removal
• Surgical nail removal

Your dermatologist can perform both types of nail removal in a medical office or a clinic. With either procedure, the nail can grow back. If the infection fails to clear, however, your dermatologist can treat the nail so that it cannot grow back.

Treatment Reference

Burn wound injuries are caused by fires or flames, hot liquids or steam, contact with a hot object or agent like grease or tar, chemicals, or electricity.

The burn depth depends on how hot the agent was and how long the burned area was in contact with the agent and how thick the skin is in the area. There are three levels of a burn injury:

First-degree burns

A first-degree burn is considered the least severe because it only affects the outer layer of skin. These burns cause minor damage to the skin. Skin may be red and tender or swollen. An example would be a mild sunburn that turns red, swelling and may peel. First-degree burns can generally be treated at home.

Second-degree burns 

These burns go through the second layer of skin, called the dermis. These burns cause pain, redness, white, wet, and shiny skin blisters and are often painful.

The injury may ooze or bleed. They usually heal within 1 to 3 weeks. After healing, skin may be discolored. These burns generally do not leave raised scars.

Third-degree burns 

These burns damage both layers of the skin and may also damage the underlying bones, muscles, and tendons. Injured skin may turn white, black, and/or gray. It may feel dry and leathery. Sometimes there is no pain because the nerve endings under the skin are destroyed.

Treatment Options for Burn Wound

After you have received first aid for a major burn, medical care may include medications and products that are intended to encourage healing.

Water-based treatments. 

Your care team may use techniques such as ultrasound mist therapy to clean and stimulate the wound tissue.

Fluids to prevent dehydration. 

You may need intravenous (IV) fluids to prevent dehydration and organ failure.

Pain and anxiety medications. 

Healing burns can be incredibly painful. You may need morphine and anti-anxiety medications particularly for dressing changes.

Burn creams and ointments. 

If you are not being transferred to a burn center, your care team may select from a variety of topical products for wound healing, such as bacitracin and silver sulfadiazine (Silvadene). These help prevent infection and prepare the wound to close.

Dressings. 

Your care team may also use various specialty wound dressings to prepare the wound to heal. If you are being transferred to a burn center, your wound will likely be covered in dry gauze only.

Treatment Reference

An ingrown toenail is caused by the pressure from the ingrowth of the nail edge into the skin of the toe. Once the edge of the nail breaks through the skin, it produces inflammation. Initially presenting as a minor discomfort, it may progress into an infection in the adjacent skin and/or become a reoccurring problem. Ingrown toenails most commonly affect the large (great) toes.

Causes of Ingrown Toenails

An ingrown toenail happens when the corner or edge of your toenail curves and grows into the surrounding skin. This may cause pain, redness, and swelling. The condition is very common in both men and women. Your big toe is most likely to be affected.

Common causes of ingrown toenails are:

• toenail trauma, such as stubbing your toe
• wearing shoes that are too tight
• cutting toenails too short
• cutting toenails at an angle

To prevent infection, it’s important to treat ingrown toenails as soon as they occur. Mild cases may require minor treatment with home remedies. Serious cases may need surgical intervention.

Symptoms of Ingrown Toenail

Ingrown toenail symptoms and signs include redness, pain, and swelling. Sometimes there may be a clear yellowish drainage, or if it becomes infected, pus drainage.

Young children may show signs of limping in order to avoid putting pressure at the ingrown toenail site. If the ingrown toenail has been present for a long time, a very vascular tissue called granulation tissue may form that easily bleeds.

Minor foot problems like ingrown toenails may cause serious complications in some people. See doctor if you have an ingrown toenail and have diabetes or another condition that causes poor circulation, or you have a compromised immune system.

Patient should also see a doctor if:

• Pain and swelling are severe.
• Home remedies don’t improve the condition.
• You have an allergic skin reaction to a home remedy.
• You have questions about how to care for an ingrown toenail.

Surgical Treatment

There are different types of surgical treatments for ingrown toenails. Partial nail removal only involves removing the piece of nail that is digging into skin.

Following surgery, it is advisable to keep a bandage around the wound until it heals.

An ingrown toenail, which doctors might call onychocryptosis, is a common complaint. This painful condition happens when the toenail grows down into the skin. It most commonly affects the big toe, with the corner of the nail growing into the nail bed.

People can often treat ingrown toenails at home by wearing sandals to avoid putting pressure on the toe, soaking the toe in warm water, and keeping the area clean to help it heal on its own.

Ingrown toenails irritate the skin. As a result, they can make it easier for bacteria and other microbes to get in, which increases the risk of infection. Promptly treating an ingrown toenail reduces this risk. Some signs of infection include:

• swelling
• pus
• redness
• extreme pain
• a fever

If the toenail is very swollen or inflamed, or it does not get better after a few days, a doctor may diagnose an infection and prescribe antibiotics. They might also prescribe a special splint to prevent the toenail from growing deeper into the skin. If the toe still does not heal, a doctor may recommend surgery.

About Aftercare Treatment

Now, there will be some mild swelling and maybe some aches at the surgical site during the healing process.

We’ll send you home with a post-op kit with extra wound dressing, wash, gauze and bandages, and you should do best to avoid stubbing or injuring your toe as it heals.

We may also recommend you avoid swimming or vigorous athletic exercise for some period of time after the ingrown toenail surgery.

By the time your anesthetic wears off and feeling returns to your toe, there’ll be no more nail digging into the skin, and your symptoms will be a lot better than before you came in.

In fact, most people are able to wear normal shoes and return to normal activities (work, school, etc.) the very next day. It’s about as close to walk in, walk out as it gets for any kind of surgical procedure.

Treatment Reference

Surgery that involves a cut incision in the skin can lead to a wound infection after surgery. Most surgical wound infections show up within the first 30 days after surgery.

Skin is very sensitive during the wound healing process. Because of this, it can sometimes lead to surgical wound incisions reopening. Breaks can happen in a couple different ways, and can range in severity.

Surgical wound infections may have pus draining from them and can be red, painful or hot to touch. You might have a fever and feel sick.

Taking care of surgical wound 

The medical term for stitches is sutures. Other methods that can be used to close a surgical wound include metal clips or staples and adhesive dressings, tapes or glue. The method your surgeon uses will depend on where your wound is, how big it is and how strong the closure needs to be.

Stitches

Stitches are a type of medical thread sewn through the skin at the site of injury that bring the wound together to heal properly.

If a patient has received stitches, the doctor will either remove them after the wound has healed, or they will dissolve over time. If the stiches are dissolvable, medical tape may be used to hold the wound together.

Dissolvable stitches typically begin disintegrating one to two weeks after surgery. Although it is not the norm, be aware that sometimes dissolvable stitches can take up to several months before they disappear completely.

Surgical Staples

Surgical staples are a special type of staple used in in medical procedures, instead of stitches, to bring wounds together to heal properly.

If a patient has received staples to close the incision, don’t worry about the removal process. As the doctor will schedule time to remove them after the wound has fully healed.

You need to keep these dry if you have a shower, so put a waterproof dressing over the strips because they could come off in water. They’ll usually come off by themselves after a week to 10 days.

Surgical Skin Glue

Surgical skin glue is a special kind of medical skin adhesive often used in surgery. It works by fusing the edges of the wound, and ths allows for the wound to heal underneath the glue.

Your surgeon may use skin glue to close your wound, especially if have a small wound. An advantage of skin glue is that it brings the edges of your skin together very quickly. This helps to seal the wound and form a barrier that lowers the risk of infection.

Its’ important not to use any ointment or moisturiser near your wound as it may cause the glue to peel off too soon. It’s also important to keep your wound out of the sun until the glue is gone and your wound has healed.

Symptoms of Surgical Wound Infections

Surgical wound are frequently monitored to make sure they are healing properly. Infections may affect only the skin, tissue under the skin, or implants, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Trusted Source. Signs of a surgical wound infection include:

• increased pain and redness around the wound
• delayed healing
• the presence of pus
• a foul smell, or drainage from the wound

In some cases, an infected surgical wound can appear dried out or deeper. Fever may also be a common symptom.

Conclusion

Optimal management of surgical wounds is an important part of post-operative recovery and health care professionals should monitor the process of acute wound healing, prevent wound complications and treat appropriately if complications arise.

The key elements of post-operative wound management include timely review of the wound, appropriate cleansing and dressing, and early recognition and intervention of wound complications.

Treatment Reference