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Surgical Wound Essay

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A surgical wound as defined by Dempsey, French, Hillege & Wilson, 2009, “is the result of planned invasive therapy or treatment.” Surgical wounds comprise of not only incisions made in surgery, but intravenous therapys and lumbar punctures (Dempsey et al., 2009). Each wound varies in size, depending on the procedure required (Lynn, 2010).

Surgical wounds heal by primary intention (Schilling McCann, 2006). A primary intention wound consists of minimal tissue loss, and are typically held together by sutures, staples or clips, therefore resulting in a faint scar, as stated by Carville, 2003.

Mrs Baxter’s wound will heal by secondary/tertiary intention. Tertiary intention is also known as ‘Delayed Primary Intention” (Carville, 2003). As seen in the case study, Mrs. Baxter’s wound is quiet large (5x7x3cm) and secondary intention healing is needed as the wound extends from the epidermis to the dermis and the subcutaneous tissue (Schilling McCann, 2006). Schilling McCann, 2006, classifies this as a full thickness wound. Secondary intention healing is characteristically used when the wound edges are unable to be …show more content…
John’s short-term post-operative goal is to manage and maintain analgesia. There are many types od medication in which to assist John in post-operative pain relief. To understand which pain medication will work best, it is important to discuss the patient’s current experience with pain. It is also important to administer a drug that will not impact the patient’s life severely. An appropriate drug should consist of the following characteristics; oral, rapid action, erase pain, safe, low sedative effect, and must have a low tolerance and addiction level (Elton, Stanley, & Burrows, 1986). Elton, Stanley, & Burrows, 1986, states that the selection of the drug will also depend on the duration of the pain, the intensity, and the mood of the

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