Wounds that don't begin to heal within a month - or don't heal entirely in two months - are chronic (non-healing) wounds. Chronic wounds can develop complications that put your health at risk. Sentara specialists provide:
Our doctors and certified wound care nurses work together to assess the wound and create a personalized treatment plan. During evaluation, you can expect to:
- Provide a detailed medical history
- Have a physical examination
- Follow up with needed testing (such as cell cultures, imaging or blood tests)
Our specialists clean and debride (remove dead or inflamed tissue) the wound. We then apply dressing (sterile bandage, pad or compress) to the injured tissue. Dressing the wound helps to:
- Prevent infection
- Promote healing
- Protect the wound
- Remove excess fluid
We may have you wear compression stockings or bandages to apply pressure to the wound and improve circulation. Some wound dressings contain biological skin substitutions that help promote cell regrowth to aid healing.
For chronic wounds, we may use hyperbaric oxygen therapy. You enter a special pressurized chamber to increase the oxygen in your blood to help the wound heal.
Sentara's experts may treat infected wounds with antibiotic medications. We may also debride the wound using surgical instruments.
Our specialists use negative pressure (vacuum-assisted closure) to remove fluid and increase blood flow to the wound. Using a plastic tube, doctors connect a pump to an airtight dressing to create this negative pressure.
Proper nutrition plays a critical role in helping wounds heal. Our experts provide nutrition care and check to see if you have nutritional deficiencies that may interfere with wound healing.
When wounds are painful, we provide treatment to help manage pain so you can focus on recovery. We may recommend nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or other medications to relieve pain.
Our wound care experts may refer you to a Sentara pain management specialist or to the Sentara Home Care Services pain management program.
When poor circulation (blood flow) causes a non-healing wound, we may refer you for vascular therapy. These specialty therapists evaluate circulation and recommend treatments to improve blood flow.
Sentara Wound Healing Centers