Color is generally clear to pale yellow (normal), red (fresh blood), brown (dried or old blood), white (see above), or blue-green (usually indicative of Pseudomonas infection and should be cultured). The amount of drainage is generally documented as absent, scant, minimal, moderate, large, or copious.
Color: Wound drainage that is part of the healing process is usually clear or has a pale hue. Slightly colored drainage or discharge that changes color may be a sign of an infection. Odor: Most of the time, smell is not a good indicator of an infection.
Purulent drainage is a sign of infection. It's a white, yellow, or brown fluid and might be slightly thick in texture. It's made up of white blood cells trying to fight the infection, plus the residue from any bacteria pushed out of the wound.
Normal wound drainage involves the discharge of thin, watery fluids that may be clear or contain tiny amounts of blood. Abnormal wound drainage is when the discharge is thick, bloody, or has a milky white, yellow, green, gray, or brown color (often with a foul smell).
Serous drainage is composed mainly of plasma. It is often thin and watery and will usually have a clear to yellowish or brownish appearance. Small amounts of serous drainage are normal during the first stages of healing.
Serous and serosanguinous drainage are normal for the first two or three days. But you should watch for signs that the amount of blood mixed with serum is increasing. If this happens, see your doctor. Paying close attention to a wound as it heals is vital.
Evidence indicates that if a wound is not allowed to drain freely, blood, body fluids, pus, and necrotic material will collect in the wound, providing a growth medium for microorganisms. Surgical wound drainage is recognized as a key element in facilitating the healing process.
Your surgeon will usually remove the bulb when drainage is below 25 ml per day for two days in a row. On average, JP drains can continue to drain for 1 to 5 weeks. Keep a log and bring it to the clinic for discussion so your surgical team can determine the best time to remove the drain.
Purulent drainage is thick, milky, and even changes colour if the infection progresses. Green, yellow, brown or white colour: A wound exhibiting purulence is plagued with pus – a sign of infection. If the pus appears to be green, yellow, brown or milky white in colour, it indicates a progression of infection.
There are four types of wound drainage: serous, sanguineous, serosanguinous, and purulent. Serous drainage is clear, thin, and watery. The production of serous drainage is a typical response from the body during the normal inflammatory healing stage.
Once you stop the bleeding and clean the wound, you should apply a clean bandage. Here's why: Air dries out the wound and promotes cell death, not healing. Covering the wound maintains the natural moisture that helps keep cells alive.
An abscess is the body's normal reaction to an infection and is caused by bacteria, fungi, parasites, or viruses. When this happens, it's important to drain the abscess in order to prevent the infection from spreading throughout your body.
Too much wound drainage: wound bed has free fluid visible, the dressing is wet or saturated, frequent changes required, and periwound skin may be macerated or denuded.
The wound may drain for the first 2 days. Cover the wound with a clean dry dressing. Change the dressing if it becomes soaked with blood or pus. If a gauze packing was placed inside the abscess pocket, you may be told to remove it yourself.
Healthy granulation tissue is pink in colour and is an indicator of healing. Unhealthy granulation is dark red in colour, often bleeds on contact, and may indicate the presence of wound infection.
Removing drains too soon may result in fluid buildup, seroma, and the need for fluid aspiration and/or a second surgery. Generally speaking, most patients who require tummy tuck drains are able to have them removed after about 1 – 3 weeks.
The reason for leaving the drain tubes in is to decrease ti chance of fluid collection (seroma). However, leaving the tubes in too long can increase the chance of infection at the tune sites and potentially into deeper space.
An infected wound can produce a yellowish, bad-smelling fluid called pus. When fluid seeps from a wound, it is called wound drainage.
Wound drainage may be caused by surgery, injury or anything that results in an open wound. Drainage is normal during the inflammatory stages of a wound, but becomes more cause for concern as the wound enters other stages of the healing process. Drainage can be a sign of infection, but not always.
Wound drainage that has a milky texture and is gray, yellow, or green is known as purulent drainage. It could be a sign of infection. The drainage is thicker because it contains microorganisms, decaying bacteria, and white blood cells that attacked the site of the infection. It may have a strong smell too.
You also may see some clear fluid oozing from the wound. This fluid helps clean the area. Blood vessels open in the area, so blood can bring oxygen and nutrients to the wound. Oxygen is essential for healing.
Surgical drains are implants that allow removal of fluid and/or gas from a wound or body cavity. This broad definition includes nasogastric tubes, urinary catheters, vascular access ports, and ventriculoperitoneal shunts.
If wound is draining much, pack with dry gauze to absorb excess moisture. For copious drainage, sanitary pads can be a very absorbent, cushiony, and inexpensive dressing. Wound drainage may be clear, cloudy, pink, yellow, dark red, or brown. It should gradually become clearer, and be produced in smaller amounts.
Serous drainage is a clear, thin, and watery exudate that typically appears during the inflammatory stage of wound healing.