What is an Optimal Wound Healing Environment?

Wound care is often a matter of keeping the area covered and moist, keeping out bacteria and maintaining an ideal environment to allow the body to do the work of healing itself. Certain therapies, like hyperbaric oxygen therapy, can optimize healing, but the ongoing environment the wound is kept in will be the deciding factor in the healing process.

Moisture Levels

Contrary to past beliefs, allowing a wound to scab over and dry out is not usually the best option.

Depending upon the cause of the wound, keeping it covered and moist gives the body more opportunity to complete the healing process. The scab is the body’s way of protecting the wound from bacteria entering it. Creating a scab takes resources the body could be using to heal the wound. The covering protects the wound and allows the body to focus on the important work of healing.

Decreased Infection

Several elements in the epidermis work together to heal a wound. Keratinocyte cells are one of the major components of the epidermis. For wound healing to happen, these cells need a moist environment in which to function. Healing is far more efficient when the wound is covered, protected, and kept at an optimally moist level. The covering also increases angiogenesis, a process that decreases the PH, preventing the development of harmful bacteria. The combination of wound healing and reduction in bacteria means there are fewer risks of infection.

Reduced Pain and Scarring

Moist wound care has the additional benefit of being more comfortable for the patient, reducing stress levels and further promoting healing. Less pain also means that mobility is not as impaired, which increases circulation and oxygenation to the area. The growth and movement of new cells is more even in a moist environment, reducing inflammation and scarring. Wound management means working with your doctor to create the idea healing environment. Call us today, to discuss your wound care plan.