Rowley Cottingham <[log in to unmask]>typed
> Attachment 1: Steristrips on forearm.jpg,image/jpeg
> Attachment 2: Inadequacy of steristrips.jpg,image/jpeg
> Attachment 3: Failure of steristrips to close wound.jpg,image/jpeg
> Attachment 4: Allergic reaction to Steristrips.jpg,image/jpeg
> Steristrips cannot provide any significant force against haematoma
> formation. Remember, creating excessive pressure within a wound is bad
> practice as it causes necrosis. That is the reason that if you must
> suture fingers you should use 5/0 or finer as it cuts out rather than
> cause an iatrogenic compartment syndrome.
> As I promised, I have looked out some relevant images from my image bank
> (all patients gave consent for these pictures to be taken and used
> widely in an educational context) to show what happens to steristrips
> after a few days. Note how the central area looks soggy and loose as the
> swelling present at the time of application has disappeared, leaving a
> wound healing by secondary intention and flapping, useless Steristrips.
Errr... Just because Steristrips *sometimes* fail, this does not mean
they *always* fail. We have all seen various methods of wound closure
fail at some stage, I think.
There may well be a case for replacing dirty/useless strips when
appropriate, but I don't feel their use should be totally dismissed.
What do people here use, for example, on the multiple parallel forearm
cuts on self-harmers?
--
Helen D. Vecht: [log in to unmask]
Edgware.
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