Showing a Little Leg

That's right, mute members of my malcontent musings, it's time for a little alliteration and to look in on my leg wound. Because I know all of you secretly thrill to images of open flesh, right? Right.

For the record, or so those that are responsible for the record have told me, podiatrists are responsible for everything below the knees. Since this is the case, I'm going to start qualifying leg wounds like the one I'm treating as "Wound Care for Feet" in the "labels section."

That said, I'll post all of the pictures again, finishing with the one I took this morning.

The initial wound.

After 10 days of wound care.

After 20 days of wound care.

The progress is far more obvious than the previous update. The single wound has been split in two by the bridge of new skin. 

Something I haven't brought up is a diabetic's inability to heal swiftly. Microvascular damage prevents blood flow to injuries, slowing the healing process. That's why it's imperative to engage in proper wound care. So, again...

1. Keep the wound clean. Gently wash with soap and water and PAD the wound dry with sterile gauze*. Unless there's dirt or other foreign matter in the wound, do not scrub!
2. Disinfect with betadine or iodine. Either will help eliminate microbial growth that could lead to infection.
3. Coat the wound with antibiotic ointment. This step is optional, but I recommend it to prevent scabs from sticking to anything you use to cover the wound. That means the next step is...
4. Cover the wound. Depending on the wound's size, use gauze or Band-Aids. I prefer not to use anything that will stick to my skin, since is was just such an adhesive that made the original wound larger. 
5. Stay alert for signs of infection. That includes increased pain, pus, the area around the wound becoming hot to the touch, the area around the wound becoming particularly red and angry, a foul odor coming from the wound or gauze during dressing changes, and/or fever.
6. Keep the wound covered. Studies have show that "allowing a wound to air out to dry" doesn't help the healing process. Keeping it covered and protected does.

If you noticed the asterisk in step one, sterile gauze can be expensive. If I don't have any on hand, I'll cut corners, but do so very carefully. You see, I keep 91% isopropyl alcohol in a small spray bottle on hand. I'll take a paper towel, spray it a few times, getting it moist, but not soaking it. Wave it a bit so it dries, then use it to pad the wound. Do not use isopropyl alcohol on an open wound! It will kill healthy cells that are trying to heal you. And it'll STING!!! 

That's it for today. My right thumb is screaming at me, and I didn't even use it while typing this! So until my next action-packed entry, be well!