The patient who had an emergency abdominal surgery looks at his incision on the first postoperative day and says, "I sure hope this doesn't leave much of a scar. Is there some type of medicine or ointment I can put on it?"
What should the nurse consider prior to responding to that comment?
1. This incision will heal by primary intention and will probably leave only a hairline scar.
2. This incision will fill in with granulation tissue and leave a moderately big scar despite any medication applied.
3. This incision was done in an emergent fashion but continuous application of steroid creams will prevent scarring.
4. This incision will have to be reclosed later and will leave a large scar unless a topical antibiotic is used continuously.
Correct Answer: 1
This picture shows a clean, straight incision that was closed early, so it will probably leave a hairline scar. This is called healing by primary intention. Healing by secondary intention is when the incision is left open and granulation begins. This leaves a large scar. The fact that this was an emergency surgery should have nothing to do with the scarring potential if the incision is clean and closed immediately. Healing by secondary intention is when the incision is left open and granulation begins.
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What will be an ideal response?