Common Chronic Wounds that NSWOC on Call Nurses Will Help You Manage
Chronic wounds have become a fact of life for our aging population. These wounds may be the result of an accidental trauma that fails to heal due to underlying systemic conditions such as Obesity, Diabetes, and Heart Disease. Wound healing failure leads to increased pain and suffering and a high risk for infection. Health care systems spend millions of dollars on chronic wound treatments and products. Knowing how to prevent chronic wounds, alleviate wound pain and suffering and use advanced wound healing products, in a cost effective way, are specialty skills of NSWOC on Call Nurses.
Lower Extremity Venous Disease
Lower Extremity Venous Disease is a chronic and difficult to manage condition mainly affecting women, that worsens with age. It is characterized by swelling, painful and itchy skin of the lower limb, and recurrent weeping wounds.
Today much is known about the etiology and treatment of these wounds but this information does not always get to general practitioners. Best care involves the use of compression wraps and stockings to reduce swelling and improve healing.
NSWOC On Call Nurses are highly skilled in the assessment and management of VLU and will help the patient and caregiver to manage symptoms, reduce the risk of infection and improve their quality of life.
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Lower Extremity Neuropathic Disease
Lower Extremity Neuropathic disease is a chronic and difficult to manage condition affecting people with Diabetes. It is characterized by loss of sensation of the toes and feet, reduced circulation to the foot, swelling, callus formation and foot deformity. These changes in the foot often result in foot trauma from shoes or other sources of injury that go unnoticed. These wounds fail to heal and are at high risk for infection. They are called Diabetic Foot Ulcers (DFU). DFU have serious complications, including amputation and need immediate medical attention.
Due to the increase in Diabetes in our country there has been a marked increase in patients experiencing DFU. The public and general practitioners are often unaware of the new and evolving research into the prevention, assessment, diagnosis and treatment of these wounds.
NSWOC On Call Nurses are highly skilled in the assessment and management of DFU and will help the patient and caregiver to link with specialized diabetic care, manage symptoms, reduce the risk of infection and improve DUF.
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Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD)
Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD) is a chronic condition resulting in diseased arteries that, due to the formation of plaque, prevent the blood from your heart and lungs reaching your lower limbs, feet and toes. It is characterized by cramps and pain in the extremities, especially when lying in bed at night, or when walking, changes in the colour of the skin, cold feet and poor nail growth. Small extremely painful, non-healing wounds may spontaneously appear on the toes. A trauma to the foot may not heal and wound infection is common.
If you are a patient, LEARN MORE Wounds caused by PAD are called peripheral arterial ulcers and are difficult to treat and often not healable. Patients require supportive care including preventative strategies. When wounds cannot be prevented, or healed, treatment to reduce pain and suffering and the reduction of the risk of infection.
NSWOC On Call Nurses are highly skilled at the assessment and management of arterial wounds and will help the patient and caregiver to manage symptoms, reduce the risk of infection and improve their wounds.
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Chronic Skin Fragility of Aging – Skin Tear
As we age so too does our skin. Paper thin skin that tears easily and can lead to an acute wound. A recent study in Ontario suggests that over 20% of residents in long term care will sustain a skin tear. Common causes of these wounds include falls, bumps and caregivers pulling on the skin during routine care. The use of tapes on fragile skin is also a common source of skin tears.
Due to underlying changes in the skin these wounds are difficult to heal. Current literature supports using standardized skin assessment tools and prevention strategies.
NSWOC On Call Nurses are highly skilled at the assessment and management of skin tears and will help the patient and caregiver to implement prevention strategies, recognize early warning signs and to manage wounds appropriately, reducing associated pain and the risk of infection.
Moisture Associated Skin Damage (MAD) and Incontinence Associated Dermatitis (IAD)
Long-term exposure to moisture is harmful to the skin. Sources of moisture include urinary and fecal incontinence, wound drainage, perspiration and oral secretions. IAD is caused by long term exposure of the skin to urine or feces.
IAD is caused by long term exposure of the skin to urine or feces. It appears as wet, weepy and painful skin that is easily traumatized. Damaged skin is less effective at handling pressure so people who are incontinent and relatively immobile are at much higher risk of developing Pressure Injures (bed sores).
It is estimated that over 50% of residents in long-term care experience incontinence of urine and or feces. Managing the incontinence is the first step in preventing IAD and eliminating the unnecessary pain and suffering it causes.
NSWOC On Call Nurses are highly skilled at the assessment and management of incontinence and can provide assessment, prevention and management strategies to patients and caregivers to manage and treat IAD.
When a person has limited feeling in their bodies, especially their sacrum/coccyx and extremities, due to injury, medications or sedation, they can develop skin breakdown to in those areas. These wounds used to be called “bed sores” but because they can happen at any time over bony prominences not protected from pressure, we now call these types of wounds “pressure injuries”. They can develop in just a few hours or over days. Immobility and incontinence puts a patient at extreme risk for pressure injury.
Pressure injuries are an indicator of quality of care and as such are closely monitored. Appropriate management always starts with removing the cause, providing consistent offloading of pressure and wound management focused on reducing pain and suffering, reducing the risk of infection and promoting healing.
NSWOC On Call Nurses are highly skilled at the assessment and management of Pressure Injuries and will help the patient and caregiver to implement prevention strategies, discuss offloading techniques and how to recognize early warning signs to prevent this painful and costly condition.