How to Minimize Pain During Dressing Changes

Wound dressing changes are often a source of great discomfort for any patient. Dressing wounds appropriately and carefully goes a long way to reduce the pain of removing the bandages, but there’s more to facilitating pain relief when changing wound dressings.

Read on to learn how to remove dressings from wounds without pain, reduce risks of infection from wound dressings and increase your patient’s overall outcomes.

1. Encourage Patient Involvement in Wound Dressing Changes

Assess your patient’s pain levels before and after each wound dressing change. When caregivers acknowledge the presence of pain and allow the patient to be involved in decisions like choosing the best time of day to change dressings, they tend to have better overall outcomes. Together, the caregiver and patient can determine the best way to manage discomfort. You can also involve patients in their own wound dressing changes if their overall health and mobility allows, which can bring them a greater sense of control over their pain.

2. Choose the Correct Wound Dressing Types

The best dressing for an open wound is one that will not adhere to the wound bed, making it easier to remove without pain. Traditional wound dressing types, like gauze, will cause more pain and need to be changed more often than advanced wound dressings, like alginates and soft silicone bandages, which do not adhere to wound beds. Choosing hydrolyzed collagen-infused products can help improve cell reproduction and speed up the healing process, while also maintaining a moist environment that can lessen pain during dressing changes. These advanced wound dressing types work with various levels of exudate and are appropriate for tunneling, undermining and recalcitrant wounds.

3. Consider Analgesic Pain Relief for Wound Dressing Changes

Pre-dosing with over-the-counter analgesics, like NSAIDS, about an hour before dressing wounds can help alleviate pain during the change process. If your patient is in extreme pain, a consultation with the treating physician can determine whether a prescription for opioids or other pain management drugs is appropriate.

4. Learn How to Remove a Dressing from Wounds Without Pain

Go slowly when removing old wound dressings. Use caution when removing securements like surgical tape to prevent medical adhesive-related injury, which will only exacerbate the wound pain. You may need to soak the wound in a normal saline or wound cleanser before removing the dressing if it has adhered to the wound bed or periwound tissue. Consider using skin barriers or other wound care prep products before dressing wounds if the patient’s skin is fragile or damaged. These can help remove bandage adhesive from the skin without painful rubbing. Some antibiotic ointments also contain a topical anesthetic to make the process more comfortable, while lowering the risk of infection.

5. Use Alternative Therapies to Lessen Discomfort While Dressing Wounds

Help your patient relax, reduce anxiety and manage the discomfort of dressing changes with alternative techniques like visualization, distraction and focused breathing. These can provide sufficient pain relief for wound dressing changes and helps the patient avoid both suffering through pain and taking unnecessary medications.

Resource:

https://www.woundsource.com/blog/how-decrease-pain-associated-wound-dressing-changes