Question

Which action is correct by the nurse when performing a wound irrigation?

-Removing the bedsheets from the bed.
-Cooling the irritant to room temperature.
-Positioning the patient's wound vertical to the collection basin.
-Administering analgesics immediately after starting the irrigation procedure.

Answer 1

Monitoring for increased redness, swelling, and pain after wound care is essential to detect and treat infections early, preventing the spread and avoiding serious complications.

Step-by-step explanation:

It is important to watch for increased redness, swelling, and pain after a cut or abrasion has been cleaned and bandaged because these symptoms might signal an infection at the wound site. When a wound is infected, the body’s immune response intensifies, leading to these local inflammatory signals.

It is crucial to monitor for these signs, as an untreated infection can potentially spread to nearby tissues or enter the bloodstream, leading to a more serious condition like sepsis, which is a life-threatening systemic response to infection.