Difficult to dress wounds

Not all wounds are located in easy to reach body locations and finding the correct wound dressing can often be very challenging. Many manufacturers offer a variety of foam dressing shapes designed for specific body areas such as heel or elbow dressings, sacral dressings, oval shapes, and tubular dressings. Whenever possible speciality shaped dressings should be used. On occasion these shapes may be costlier up front, however, in the long run cost savings will be realised due to the dressing actually staying in place requiring fewer changes. If a certain speciality shape is not available, many wound dressings can be modified to fit awkward locations. Below are some modification tips and securement strategies to consider when faced with difficult to dress wounds.