How to Care for Stitches: Tips for Better Healing after Surgery or an Injury
You're on the road to recovery! While you're healing from your surgery or stitches, plan on spending 10-20 minutes a day inspecting and caring for your incision. The healing and recovery process will be significantly faster if infection is avoided, so it's worth following the below tips, as well as the home-care instructions from your doctor.
How to Care for Stitches and Staples as They Heal
Stitches (AKA sutures) and staples are as much a part of the healing process as they are the procedure. They help keep your incision or large wound closed, clean, and free from infection, and therefore need to be carefully managed during the healing process.
Keep Stitches Clean & Dry
It’s generally recommended to keep your wound dry for 24 hours after a procedure to minimize the risk of infection. After 24 hours, gently dab with a clean, moist cloth to clean away any leaking fluids if needed. You may also replace the bandage covering your stitches with a clean new one at this time.
Try your best not to get your stitches wet. While a gentle clean is okay, too much water can degrade the stitches, so it’s best to keep them dry. Cover your wound with a waterproof bandage when showering, and replace that once you’re dry.
Don’t Scratch Itchy Stitches
Easier said than done, but resist the urge to scratch where your stitches are, no matter how itchy they may feel. This could make them pull at your skin, or even come out. Scratching also increases the chance of infection.
Limit Your Movement
Big movements, or even a lot of little ones, near a wound with stitches can potentially cause it to re-open. So it’s best to avoid putting too much movement or pressure on the stitches/staples.
How Long to Keep Dressing on Stitches
Changing the dressing on your incision wound or stitches should be done every day. It shouldn't take long to change the bandage or dressing covering your stitches, but it's important to go slowly and follow each step.
This will help ensure your stitches wound heals quickly and properly.
Follow These Steps to Properly Change Your Stitches Bandage Daily:
Prepare the Area
Set up a specific spot in your home to do your daily incision care. Try to keep it free from children or pets, which might bring dirt and germs to it. Lay down a large sterile pad to put your supplies on.
Organize Your Supplies
Have these supplies open and ready to use:
Gauze and bandages
Tape
Ointments (if applicable)
Single-use medical gloves
If you need to make your own bandage with gauze and tape, now’s the time to prep it. Not sure how to do it? Take a look at these step-by-step instructions first.
Wash Your Hands Thoroughly
Remove any jewelry and wash your hands with warm soap and water for 20-30 seconds. Scrub your wrists and under your fingernails, too. Rinse before drying well with a clean towel.
Carefully Remove the Bandage
Slowly remove the tape from your dressing by pulling up, toward the wound.
Inspect Your Wound for Infection
Infection in a surgical incision can mean serious business. Call your doctor if you have any of these signs:
An incision that is swollen, hot, or notably red
A wound that has green or yellow drainage
A wound that smells bad
Bleeding that does not stop with pressure
Pain that is not getting better
A feeling of hardness or fullness around the incision
An incision that has opened
A fever or 38.3°C or 101°F
Soak up any excess fluid with a gauze pad while you’re inspecting the incision.
Cover Up Again
Unless you’re told to do so by your doctor, cleaning a wound at every dressing change can do more harm than good1. So if you’re clear of all signs of infection, apply an antibiotic ointment (if you’ve been directed to do so) and put on the new bandage. Make sure it’s aligned properly to fully cover your wound on all sides.
Dispose of your old dressing, the gloves, and any gauze you used in a plastic bag before throwing it in the trash. Finish it all off with another wash of your hands.
To Clean or Not to Clean
While you’ll be checking your wound twice a day, you don’t need to clean it that often. Too much touching and fussing can irritate it. But it does still need to be kept clean. Your healthcare provider may give you specific instructions on how to clean your wound, but here’s a general rundown on what to do and what to avoid.
Wash your hands well with soap and water before starting.
Soak a cloth or gauze in warm water or a mix of sterile water and salt. If you’re using individually wrapped gauze, you can pour the saline solution directly into the package to limit contact and contamination.
Wring the cloth or gauze gently so it’s not dripping wet, then gently dab or wipe the skin around the incision.
Avoid skin cleansers, antibacterial soaps, alcohol, iodine, and peroxide. Also check with your doctor before putting any lotion, cream, or ointment on it once it’s starting to heal.2
Pat the area dry with a clean cloth or gauze before re-bandaging.
