Wound Packing

What is Wound Packing ?

Wound packing involves placing a moistened packing material into your wound and then covering it with an outer bandage (dressing). This helps promote proper healing of deep tissue and tissue under the skin. It also helps prevent bleeding, infection, and further injury.

Wounds are packed until deep tissue has had time to heal. The time it takes for this to occur is different for everyone. Your health care provider will show you how to pack and dress your wound. Using gloves and a sterile technique is important in order to avoid spreading germs into your wound.

What are the risks?

• Infection.
• Delayed or abnormal healing.

How to pack your wound

Follow your health care provider’s instructions on how often you need to change dressings and pack your wound. You will likely be asked to change dressings 1–2 times a day.

Supplies Needed

• Gloves.
• Wetting solution.
• Clean bowl.
• Packing material (gauze or gauze sponges).
• Clean towels.
• Outer dressing.
• Tape.
• Cotton balls or cotton-tipped swabs.
• Small plastic bag.

Preparing Your New Packing Material

1. Make sure your work surface or countertop is clean and disinfected.
2. Wash your hands well with soap and water.
3. Put a clean towel on the counter.
4. Put a clean bowl on the towel. Be sure to only touch the outside of the bowl when handling it.
5. Pour wetting solution into the bowl.
6. Cut your packing material (gauze or sponges) to the right size for your wound. Drop it into the bowl.
7. Cut four tape strips that you will use to seal the outer dressing.
8. Put cotton balls or cotton-tipped swabs on the clean towel.

Removing the Old Packing and Dressing

1. Gently remove the old dressing and packing material.
2. Put the removed items into the plastic bag to throw away later.
3. Wash your hands well with soap and water again.

Applying New Packing Material and Dressing

1. Put on your gloves.
2. Squeeze the packing material in the bowl to release excess liquid. The packing material should be moist, but not dripping wet.
3. Gently place the packing material into the wound. Use a cotton ball or cotton-tipped swab to guide it into place, filling all of the space.
4. Dry your fingertips on the towel.
5. Open up your outer dressing supplies and put them on a dry part of the towel. Keep them from getting wet.
6. Place the dressing over the packed wound.
7. Tape the four outer edges of the dressing in place.
8. Remove your gloves.
9. Wash your hands again with soap and water.

General Tips

• Follow your health care provider’s instructions on how tightly to pack the wound. At first, the wound will be packed tightly to help stop bleeding. As the wound begins to heal inside, you will use less packing material and pack the wound loosely to allow tissue to heal slowly from the inside out.
• Keep the dressing clean and dry.
• Follow any other instructions given by your health care provider on how to aid healing. This may include applying warm or cold compresses, elevating the affected area, or wearing a compression dressing.
• Ask your health care provider about sun exposure and sunscreen when the dressings are no longer needed.
• Keep all follow-up visits with your health care provider. This is important.

Contact a health care provider if:

• You have drainage, redness, swelling, or pain at your wound site.
• You notice a bad smell coming from the wound site.
• Your pain is not controlled with pain medicine.
• Tissue inside your wound changes color from pink to white, yellow, or black.
• Your wound changes in size or depth.
• You have a fever.
• You have shaking chills.
• You are having trouble packing your wound.