Dos and don'ts of wound healing

Abstract

Humans have attempted to accelerate the healing of wounds from earliest times, using a wide range of devices and remedies. Some proved useful; others were often detrimental to the injury and, more so, to the patient.1 Hippocrates called attention to healing by primary or secondary intention, and the controversy between “dry” healing and “laudable pus” was initiated. Various agents, promulgating one theory or another, have been suggested during the ensuing centuries, thus pitting practitioners against one another in the quest for the more correct approach.2–3Although there is no absolutely perfect way of dealing with tissue repair, certain concepts have emerged as being more appropriate than others.4 Few would adhere today to cauterizing wounds to stimulate proud flesh proliferation, but some quaint concepts continue to survive.5 In this presentation, we list the dos and don'ts of wound healing that we have learned in our studies of ulcer repair.