You may be wondering: how can I tell if my wound is healing or infected? The answer is simple: pain. Contrary to popular belief, pain is actually a good sign, because it signifies that your body has noticed the injury and is working hard to heal it. On the other hand, pain can also signify that you’re experiencing inflammation or nerve damage. That’s why it’s important to keep track of your pain levels throughout the healing process. If they start to decrease, that’s an indication that your wound might not be infected after all! So, since pain is a constant for both healing and infection, how to know which one is which?
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Pus drainage
Pus drainage is a sign of infection, and it’s typically a telltale sign that your wound is not healing, but it is actually going in the other direction. Pus is typically white or yellow in colour and looks like cottage cheese (sorry y’all). Pus drainage should be monitored closely by medical professionals because it can lead to further complications such as abscesses(pockets of infected tissue), cellulitis– not the one you think – (a bacterial skin infection), sepsis (blood poisoning) and necrotizingfasciitis (flesh-eating disease). Treatment for these conditions may require hospitalization or intravenous antibiotics.
Patient.info says to contact your doctor immediately ‘if the redness is spreading or the wound starts to ooze pus.’
Fever
According to Healthline, fever is a sign of infection. Not every fever means infection, but if it’s above 101°F (38°C) you should call your doctor immediately. Apart from fever, watch out for swelling, warmth and redness around the wound area.
Pain level is increasing or remains unchanged
If you're having significant pain, it could be a sign of an infection. This can be caused by bacteria or fungi that entered your body and are multiplying quickly, causing inflammation and irritation. The more inflammation and irritation there is, the more pain you'll feel.
Then, how to tell if the wound is healing?
Well, pretty simple, it’s practically the opposite of what your infected wound entails, duh. This means that if your wound is healing, you can expect to see your temperature decrease, along with your swelling and redness, as well as the general pain level. Oh, and also, your pus drainage becomes less frequent or stops completely, meaning it stops resembling cottage cheese.
The last thing you want is for a wound to become infected. With these tips, you should be able to tell if your wound is healing or getting infected. Remember that infections can happen very quickly in some cases so stay vigilant and take care of your body!
Disclaimer: The contents of this article: text, graphics, images, and other materials contained, are strictly for informational purposes only. The content is not intended to be used as a substitute for professional medical diagnosis, advice, or treatment. Please always seek the advice of a qualified health provider with all the questions that you have related to, or about, a medical condition.
Sources used:
NHS: Abscess
Mayoclinic: Cellulitis
WebMD: Sepsis
NHS: Necrotising fasciitis
Patient.info: Infected Wounds
Healthline: Stopping bleeding
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