Helping Wounds Heal, Some Tips From Mayo Clinic Women's HealthSource

A slip with a kitchen knife, a spill off a bike or a fall on the sidewalk. It's not uncommon to have a mishap that breaks the skin. When a wound occurs, your body quickly begins regeneration and repair. You can facilitate healing with proper home care. The December issue of Mayo Clinic Women's HealthSource offers these tips: Cover the wound with a sterile dressing and apply pressure to stop the bleeding. Wash the wound with tap or bottled water or sterile saline. Seek medical treatment if you need stitches, can't clean the wound or if it was caused by animal or human bite. If it's been 10 years or longer since you had a tetanus shot, you'll need medical attention, too. Next, cover the wound with a topical antibiotic ointment. Create a barrier to keep the wound moist by applying a heavy lubricant such as Vaseline or Aquaphor. Don't use betadine, alcohol or hydrogen peroxide because these harsh chemicals interfere with healing. First, cover the wound with a sterile dressing to create a warm, moist environment -- the best condition for wound healing. (This differs from past recommendations to leave the wound open to air.) A protected environment decreases pain, infection and the likelihood of reinjury. The ideal dressing keeps the wound moist and the surrounding tissue dry. Avoid plain gauze because it can stick to the scab and cause reinjury when removed. Instead, use a nonstick dressing and gently change it every day or two. Attempt to keep a wet scab intact. Wounds should normally stay covered for five days or until the surface layers have healed. Don't scratch. Itching is normal to the healing process and scratching may reopen the wound. Maintain a healthy diet and don't smoke. These healthy behaviors promote healing. Seek medical attention if the wound develops signs of infection including redness, increased pain or swelling or a yellow or green discharge. Mayo Clinic200 First St. SWRochester, MN 55902United Stateswww.mayo.edu/news

RCN: Health Survey Shows Why We Need School Nurses, UK

n response to the publication of the Health Survey for England 2007 results, Dr. Peter Carter, Chief Executive & General Secretary of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), said:"School nurses are very effective at getting children into healthy eating habits and are vital in the fight against childhood obesity. The problem is that there simply aren't enough of them. Government pledges to ensure that every child has access to a school nurse require serious attention. "It's great to see results for the role school nurses play in educating Britain's children. TV advertising campaigns cannot work alone and children must learn in school about the importance of healthy eating and exercise in order for the information to stick."NotesIn 2005 the Government White Paper for Health: Choosing Health: making healthy choices easier pledged by 2010 "to have at least one full-time, year-round, qualified school nurse working with each cluster or group of primary schools and the related secondary school".Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is the voice of nursing across the UK and is the largest professional union of nursing staff in the world. The RCN promotes the interest of nurses and patients on a wide range of issues and helps shape healthcare policy by working closely with the UK Government and other national and international institutions, trade unions, professional bodies and voluntary organisations.Royal College of Nursing

New Recommendations Released For Treatment Of IBS

Although irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is the most common disease diagnosed by gastroenterologists, it's also one of the most misunderstood. That's why updated guidelines addressing the management of the condition are being released by the American College of Gastroenterology.Through a comprehensive review of the latest medical research and expert consensus, the updated guidelines provide clinicians with a comprehensive and practical set of recommendations for the diagnosis and treatment of IBS."The last time the American College of Gastroenterology published guidelines for the management of IBS was in 2002, and the College recognized that in the span of five to six years there has been a remarkable explosion in knowledge that's become available that's helped us to understand the cause and management of IBS," says William Chey, M.D., professor of medicine and director of the Gastrointestinal Physiology Laboratory at the University of Michigan Health System.Along with Philip Schoenfeld, M.D., also of the U-M Division of Gastroenterology, Chey has helped to develop the new evidence-based recommendations.IBS is a chronic disorder of the lower intestine that causes cramping, abdominal pain, bloating, constipation and/or diarrhea that affects 10 to 15 percent of the U.S. population. The new recommendations show that "there really are things to do for these patients; it's not a hopeless situation," says Chey.
For a full list of the IBS guidelines please visit http://www.nature.com/ajg/journal/v104/n1s/index.html.