Surgical Treatment Of Purulent Inflammation
Abscess Incision and Drainage of Small Abscesses Lying Very Close to the Surface
Material
- Blade handle with blade no. 10.
- Materials for collecting material for pus culture.
- Disinfectants.
- Ethyl chloride spray or lidocaine for intracutaneous injection.
- Drain.
Procedure
- Disinfect the skin above and around the abscess.
- Cover the area with a sterile drape.
- Administer local anaesthesia using ethyl chloride spray or infiltrate the area above the fluctuation using a very fine needle intracutaneously (infiltration anaesthesia is preferred over freezing).
- Make an incision above the fluctuation. Do not “stab in the dark,” but cut where you can see. Open the abscess widely (“small surgeons make small incisions”).
- Collect material for culture using a cotton swab.
- Clean the abscess cavity with dry, sterile gauze or rinse with NaCl.
- Insert a drain or the tip of an unfolded piece of gauze.
- Apply an absorbing bandage which will allow air to pass through.
- Have the patient rest the affected body part or wear a sling if it involves the upper extremities.
- Check the wound daily and remove the drain after 2 days, if it hasn’t fallen out spontaneously.
