What Is a Surgical Wound?

Surgical wounds are normal parts of an operation and often do not take long to heal. Anesthetics make the wound painless, and pain killers can be prescribed afterward until the patient has recovered. State-of-the-art equipment allows surgeons to close the wound quickly.

Identification

• Surgical wounds are wounds that a doctor creates deliberately in order to perform an operation on a patient.

Sutures

• After performing the surgery, the surgeon will need to close the wound, so it can heal properly. Sutures are used to sew the wound closed. Sutures dissolve over time.

Staples

• Staples are metal used to close a wound quickly. This is done if the wound is serious. A second surgery is performed to remove the staples.

Steri-Strips

• Steri-Strips are a third product that can close wounds. They are adhesives that are less likely to cause infections.

Healing

• Surgical wounds heal like all other wounds. Patients are recommended to keep the wound clean and dry for 72 hours.

Time Frame

• As long as the surgical wound has not become infected, the wound will heal in two weeks.