How do you dress a skin graft donor site?
Your donor site will be covered with 1 of the following during your surgery:
- A Xeroform®, which is a sterile wound dressing (bandage) and a dry gauze.
- A Kaltostat®, which is a padded off-white dressing, under a TegadermTM (a clear dressing)
How do you take care of a skin donor site?
Clean the donor site with soap and water, and gently pat it dry with gauze or a dry cloth. Place a new Mepilex Ag bandage over the donor site (sticky side down). For the best results, the bandage should overlap on healthy skin. Put the outer bandage back on to keep the Mepilex Ag in place.
How long does a donor site skin graft take to heal?
Treatment of Skin Graft Donor Sites Donor site wounds take on average 7-10 days to heal and typically progress through two distinct phases of healing. The first is the wet phase, where the wound is highly exudative and best managed with an absorbent dressing.
What is the best dressing for a skin graft?
Foam, alginate or hydrofibre dressings should be used. If there are only small areas which have not been successfully covered by the skin graft, a simple non-adherent dressing is suitable, which may be left undisturbed for several days to allow continued epithelialisation.
How long should you keep a skin graft covered?
The donor-site area is covered with a sterile dressing for 3 to 5 days. People with deeper tissue loss may need a full-thickness skin graft. This requires the entire thickness of skin from the donor site, not just the top two layers.
What is a hydrocolloid dressing used for?
Hydrocolloids are occlusive, waterproof dressings that are generally indicated for superficial wounds with low amounts of drainage. These fancy bandages create a matrix over the wound, acting as a scab, allowing the body to retain healing fluids and protecting the wound.
Should you put Vaseline on a skin graft?
Skin Graft Dressings The edges of the dressing may be kept moist using Vaseline, which will help prevent any crusting of old blood that may accumulate.
What does a healed donor site look like?
What will the wound look like? The donor site looks like a big graze. It will look red when first healed but this will fade over the weeks and months, and should result in a pale and soft scar.
How long do you put Vaseline on a skin graft?
Apply Vaseline or Aquaphor or Bacitracin or Polysporin with a Q-tip (Do NOT use Neosporin or Triple Antibiotic ointment) to the graft site and sutured site and cover with a bandaid or nonstick gauze and paper tape. Repeat daily for one week or until completely healed with no open or draining areas.
What is the fastest way to heal a skin graft?
After your bandages are removed
- Do not scratch, pick at, or touch the graft site or donor site.
- Keep the skin moist in these areas.
- Do not soak the skin graft site in water.
- For 3 to 4 weeks, avoid any exercise or movement that stretches the skin graft.
- Protect the skin graft and donor site from the sun for 12 months.
What is the difference between hydrocolloid and hydrogel?
Hydrocolloid dressings are wound dressings that are occlusive and adhesive and can form a gel with water. Hydrogel dressings have similar properties in a gel consistency. Various hydrocolloid gels and dressings have been used in wound management to maintain moisture and aid in debridement of necrotic tissue.