Cuts, grazes and wound care
Also known as: cuts, grazes, abrasion, laceration, puncture wound, animal bite, stitches, tetanus
Most cuts and grazes heal on their own if they are cleaned, closed and kept covered. The aims are to stop bleeding, remove dirt and bacteria, bring the edges together so new skin can bridge the gap, and spot the wounds that need stitches, antibiotics or a tetanus booster.
Recognise it
- Graze: surface skin scraped off, oozing, dirty
- Cut (laceration or incision): edges may gape; bleeding depends on depth and site (scalp and face bleed freely)
- Puncture: small entry, deep track, high infection risk (nails, bites, splinters)
- Infection developing days later: spreading redness, warmth, swelling, pus, increasing pain, fever, red streaks up the limb
What to do
- Wash your hands and stop the bleedingApply pressure with a clean cloth for 10 minutes; raise the part above the heart.
- Clean the woundRinse under running tap water for several minutes to flush out dirt. Pat dry with a clean towel. Remove loose grit with clean tweezers; leave anything deeply embedded for a clinician.
- Close and coverBring the edges of a small cut together with adhesive strips. Cover with a sterile non-stick dressing or plaster; change it daily or if wet or dirty. Keep it covered until healed.
- Pain reliefParacetamol or ibuprofen if needed.
- Watch for infectionCheck daily. Seek care for spreading redness, pus, increasing pain or fever.
Do not
- Do not use antiseptic solutions, hydrogen peroxide or iodine inside a wound: they damage healing tissue; tap water is best
- Do not pull out deeply embedded objects
- Do not close dirty wounds, bites or wounds more than 12-24 hours old with strips or glue: they need cleaning and often antibiotics
- Do not pick scabs
Get medical help when
- Bleeding that does not stop after 10 minutes of pressure, or spurting blood
- A wound that gapes, is longer than about 2 cm, is on the face, over a joint or on the hand with loss of movement or sensation (may need stitches within 12-24 hours)
- Animal or human bites, deep puncture wounds, wounds contaminated with soil or glass, or something embedded
- Signs of infection, or a tetanus vaccination more than 10 years ago (5 for dirty wounds)
Why it works: the anatomy
The skin's epidermis regrows from the edges and from hair follicles at about a millimetre a day; the dermis beneath rebuilds with collagen, which is why deep cuts scar. Keeping a wound moist and covered speeds cell migration, and closing the edges shortens the distance new skin must cross. Bacteria in soil and animal mouths (Clostridium tetani, Pasteurella) thrive in deep, oxygen-poor puncture tracks, which is why those wounds are cleaned open and given antibiotics rather than sealed.