CedarPath MedicalWhat Wound Dressings Are Commonly Used in Long-Term Care?
Long-term care residents commonly have pressure injuries, skin tears and leg ulcers, so LTC wound care leans on gentle, absorbent, easy-to-apply dressings. The staples:
Everyday absorbent cover
Silicone foam and foam dressings — atraumatic, cushioning, up to ~7 days wear.
Exuding and cavity wounds
Alginate and, for very wet wounds, super absorbent dressings.
Infection risk
Silver alginate and silicone silver foam add antimicrobial silver.
Dry or sloughy wounds
Hydrogel rehydrates dry, sloughy or necrotic tissue.
Fragile skin fixation
Silicone tape secures dressings without stripping fragile skin.
Documentation
Many LTC teams also use Wound Companion to photograph each wound, record its measurements and track documented changes over time.
What wound dressings are commonly used in long-term care?
Foam and silicone foam dressings for everyday absorbent cover, alginate and super absorbent dressings for exuding wounds, silver alginate and silicone silver foam when infection is a concern, hydrogel for dry or sloughy wounds, and silicone tape for gentle fixation on fragile skin.
What dressing is best for pressure injuries in the elderly?
A soft-silicone foam dressing is a common choice: it cushions the wound, absorbs exudate and removes without stripping fragile skin. Add silver (silicone silver foam or silver alginate) if infection is a concern.
How do long-term care teams track wound healing?
Increasingly with a digital tool such as Wound Companion, where the user records wound measurements and the app keeps a dated record and progress reports — a documentation aid, not a diagnostic device.