Staged Wound Closure
What is Staged Wound Closure?
Staged wound closure refers to a wound management technique where the wound is initially left open and later surgically closed after a period of time. This approach is often used in specific clinical situations to decrease the time to healing which ultimately will decrease the risk of complications. Some types of staged wound closure relate to traumatic wounds, infected wounds, high-risk wounds, and complex surgical wounds.
The doctor will prepare the wound with cleaning and removing any tissue that is foreign or of concern. There will be an observation period that that will provide information on the condition of the wound such as developing infection or inflammation. The doctor will monitor and care for the wound and provide regular assessments and dressing changes to assess the healing process. After evaluating the healing process, the doctor will look for signs of adequate healing within the wound such as healthy granulation tissue, no signs of infection, and a decrease in the inflammation all play a part in the decision to close using clinical judgement.
There may be a process using negative pressure therapy that may also be another approach to caring for the wound this can be several weeks in this stage. Closure will be determined by the provider to look at the best option related to the wound; this may involve sutures, flaps, or grafts. The closure will be dependent on the size, location, and depth of the wound. Benefits to this type of closure helps to reduce infection risk and promote granulation tissue vital in healthy wound closure as well as allowing for adjustments to be made based on the response of the treatment.