|
What is a wound
infection? What is the relevance of having an antiseptic
wound pad?
A wound infection caused by
bacteria is where clinical signs of inflammation (heat,
redness, swelling, pain) are observed. An infection only
occurs when a critical amount of bacteria is exceeded in the
wound. Up to 50% of all wounds may become infected, which
negatively influences the healing process. Therefore, using
an antiseptic wound pad is even recommended for minor
wounds in order to keep the amount of bacteria below the
above mentioned critical level.
Can the Silver
technology wound pads be used wounds that are already
infected?
Infected wounds should only be treated by a physician.
How are Silver Ions
released in the Elastoplast SILVERHEALING™ plasters?
On coming into contact with moisture (wound exudate,
blood…), silver ions are slowly but continuously
released from the wound pad, and migrate into the wound.
There the silver ions are taken up rapidly through
bacterial membranes and interact with enzymes, other
proteins and DNA within the bacteria, thus causing
cellular distortion and loss of viability of the
bacteria.
What is the duration of
the release of Silver-ions with Elastoplast
SILVERHEALING™ wound treatments?
The release of silver is proven to exceed 24 hours.
Can the SILVERHEALING™
products be used for children?
Yes they can.
What is the difference
between a wound pad with Silver compared to an ordinary
wound pad impregnated with a wound disinfectant (e.g.
Chlorhexidine, eosine,)?
A wound pad impregnated with any kind of disinfectant
does not provide a controlled and continuous release of
the disinfecting substances. Therefore, these kind of
wound pads do not guarantee the long-lasting effect that
the silver wound pad can. Secondly, there are more
reports on resistance of bacteria to these substances,
whereas resistance to silver is extremely rare. Silver
has the utmost biocompatibility compared to all other
antiseptics.
What instructions do we
recommend for standard wound care?
1. Clean the wound: Any wound that has been
exposed to dirt should be thoroughly cleaned. This can
be done with water or a saline solution. There is
absolutely no danger to use these type of wound
cleansers in combination with the silver technology
wound care products.
2. Disinfect the
wound: With an ordinary plaster it is recommended to
disinfect the wound prior to the application of the plaster.
3. The absolute advantage of the silver
technology wound care products is that this
disinfection-step is not necessary, as the silver wound
pad itself has a proven disinfecting property.
Why do we say not to use
creams or ointments in conjunction with SILVERHEALING™
plasters?
Creams and ointments create a layer between the wound
pad and the wound. This layer acts like a barrier that
prevents the silver ions from migrating into the wound.
This reduces the action of the silver wound pad to the
function of a standard plaster as the antiseptic process
cannot take place.
Why is it better to use
a Silver wound care product instead of a wound
antiseptic and an ordinary plaster?
Using a wound antiseptic has a one-time antiseptic
effect on the wound. Any bacteria that have not been
killed in the process will multiply by 2 every 20
minutes. The silver wound care technology has a long
lasting antiseptic effect that will prevent this growth
of bacteria during the entire period of the wound
healing process.
|
