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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Suggest Treatment For Scratches On The Forearms

My father is 93. He fell and scraped the skin off his forearm about 5 days ago. It went pretty deep his. He had stiches to put things back together but there are parts of it thst is still an open wound. We change the dressing daily. The nurse advised we try to keep it dry and open when possible so it will scab. the question is should we put neosporin ointment on it because that may keep it from drying up?
Tue, 13 Dec 2016
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General & Family Physician 's  Response
HI, thanks for using healthcare magic

The neosporin would not stop it from drying up but it would reduce the signs and symptoms of infection. This is a good thing.

You should speak to the nurse to find out if the dressing is still necessary. Keeping a wound open to the atmosphere helps it to dry, this is not possible in all wounds so you would need to enquire.
This is what the nurse means by keeping it open.

I hope this helps
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Suggest Treatment For Scratches On The Forearms

HI, thanks for using healthcare magic The neosporin would not stop it from drying up but it would reduce the signs and symptoms of infection. This is a good thing. You should speak to the nurse to find out if the dressing is still necessary. Keeping a wound open to the atmosphere helps it to dry, this is not possible in all wounds so you would need to enquire. This is what the nurse means by keeping it open. I hope this helps