Treatment For Wounds

 

Multi-Disciplinary Approach to Wound Care

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Wound care can be a complicated field, one that

often requires multiple factors to be addressed. 

The patient’s wound must be tended to, of course,

but the patient’s overall health, glucose levels,

circulation, nerve function, kidney function, eyesight,

mental health, biomechanics, bacterial burden, nutrition,

footwear, and ability to function on a day-to-day basis

must all be considered. 

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Each aspect may involve a different field in medicine, and multiple specialists may be involved in your care.  These may include your family physician, a diabetologist or endocrinologist.  This may involve a vascular surgeon (circulation specialist, a neurologist (nerve specialist) or nephrologist (kidney specialist).  This may involve an optometrist and ophthalmologist (eye specialists), a psychologist or psychiatrist.  It could involve a dietician or nutrition specialist.  It could involve infectious disease specialists.  It could involve a podiatrist or orthopedic foot specialist.  It could involve plastic surgeons, cast techs, and pedorthists.  And it could involved specialist nurses.

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Even the patient’s financial health plays a role, as government insurance may not cover all the care a patient needs.  And wounds often preclude a patient’s ability to work and provide for oneself and one’s family.  

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But let's cover some basics.

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Assuming the overall health of the patient and the control of his sugar is under control, and assuming there's enough blood supply and adequate nutrition to heal, the basics of wound healing come down to this:

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Control of Infection (if present) 

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Debridement (the removal of dead, nonviable tissue from the wound)

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Offloading (the removal of pressure and friction from a wound)

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Dressings  (the bandage applied to the wound)

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Specialized treatments (negative pressure, engineered dressings, hyperbaric oxygen)

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We've given each its own page, so click on the topic of interest.

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