Advice please on wounds

[cymbid]

My mum 91, fell 5 days ago . She cut her leg badly on the step of a bus. The wound is wide and has exposed the flesh . She has oedema and her paper thin skin simply peeled back and tore when they tried to stitch it. So she now has a wound which is simply dressed and they have said will heal from the inside out.

What do they mean .The cut is about 4 inches above her ankle and 3/4 or the way around her leg. At her age surely it will take months for that to heal. And what about infection.

They are talking about sending her to a rehab facility ..... Ive no idea when , I only pick up snippets when visiting and talking to nurses.

 

[Lawson58]

My husband has had injuries like this which couldn’t be sutured. He received wound treatment at our local clinic and apart from the initial cleansing and dressing was put on a course of antibiotics.

His wounds healed surprisingly quickly and hasn’t left anything much in the way of scarring. They looked dreadful at the start but no lasting complications.

 

[CAL Y]

My late husband had a fall which tore a gaping hole in his forearm.
Like your mum @cymbid , his skin was too thin for anything other than dressing.
For the next two weeks I had to take him daily to the surgery where they used medical Manuka Honey dressings.
Within three weeks his arm was healed with barely a scar to be seen.

 

[Weasell]

My mum 91, fell 5 days ago . She cut her leg badly on the step of a bus. The wound is wide and has exposed the flesh . She has oedema and her paper thin skin simply peeled back and tore when they tried to stitch it. So she now has a wound which is simply dressed and they have said will heal from the inside out.

What do they mean .The cut is about 4 inches above her ankle and 3/4 or the way around her leg. At her age surely it will take months for that to heal. And what about infection.

They are talking about sending her to a rehab facility ..... Ive no idea when , I only pick up snippets when visiting and talking to nurses.

If they offer rehab I would say yes without hesitation.
Qualified nurses on site 24/7 to keep an eye on the wound.
Physios work in the unit nearly every day, they will work on an exercise routine to help prevent any more falls.
They will make sure she eats, hopefully a high protein diet to promote healing.

 

[cymbid]

The wound is now infected. Hardly surprising as she was admitted to A & E on wed about 4pm and the wound was not cleaned and dressed till 1 pm the following day . That said the ward she was inwas excellent and she was happy enough , though wanting home. The rehab suggestion is gone as the physio says she can shuffle about with a zimmer (which she wont use at home) and OT have nothing more to offer as she has grab rails in toilet etc. We thought she was simply going to be discharged home with his big dressing on , but its got infected. I dont know if im devastated or glad she is still in hospital

 

[nitram]

@cymbid

Manuka Honey dressings have been mentioned, they worked on a non healing wound with my son in law.

 

[TraceyK]

Hi @cymbid, I'm a retired nurse, these leg wounds do take ages to heal unfortunately, but another vote for manuka honey dressings, they are fabulous, I've just used them on my daughter's pacemaker wound & recommended to my neighbour with good effect on his wound infection too.

 

[Lawson58]

I know if you can get it in UK and other places, it will be expensive but there is a honey that has superior qualities compared with to Manuka Honey.

It is lemon Myrtle honey (backhousia citriadora) and the Citral elements are much higher content which has a greater microbiol level than any Manuka honey on the market. There are several scientific articles on line supporting this. The leaves can be used to make a delicious tea, they can replace mint for roast lamb and can be used as a paste for wounds, scratches, etc.

And it is simply declicious to eat on hot buttered toast.. I have three growing in my garden and are so precious to me.