Traumatic damages are common in ch...

Traumatic damages are common in children, and anguish irrigation is an important initial treatment ingredient to reduce bacterial counts. The use of a sterile normal solution with a syringe is standard practice for irrigation in the pass department. Tap water irrigation has been hinted as a better way to transport bacteria because of the higher hurry involved. Valente and associates compared the infection rate in children in damages irrigated with sterile normal saline solution by dint of means of standard techniques with that of griefs irrigated with running tap water.

Simple anguishs requiring repair in children who not absented to the emergency department within eight hours of injury were irrigated with either normal saline or tap water. The treatment systems were used on alternate days. Children who required antibiotic prophylaxis or who had complicated lacerations were exclud In the normal saline solution cluster wounds were irrigated using a minimum of 100 mL of normal saline solution with a syringe. Tap water irrigation was performed for a minimum of 10 secondarys with tap water taken directly from the faucet or from an acetate tube. All of the pain s were then repaired using either line of junctions staples, or skin glue. Patients were evaluated for evidence of infection within 48 to 72 hours, at get back for suture removal, or were contacted from telephone to determine the issue More than 250 patients were included in each group

A total of 14 hurt infections were equally divided between patients in the sum of two units groups, with no differences based forward the method of repair. There was, however, a significantly increased risk of infection in bottom wounds irrigated with tap water.

The authors deduce that tap water might be as effective in preventing bacterial infection as sterile normal saline solution for simple anguishs in children. The overall injury infection rate was 2.9 percent which is comparable with other studies. There is an assumption that tap water is delivered of any significant pathogenic bacterial esteems Other potential advantages of tap water irrigation include the following: (1) decreased price (2) ready availability, (3) reduction in biohazard risk to health care workers, and (4) decreased patient anxiety because of the absence of a syringe from the operation The increased risk of twelve inches infections in the group irrigated with tap water has uncertain significance and might not persist in a larger trial.

Valente JH et al. hurt irrigation in children: saline solution or tap water? Ann Emerg M May 2003;41:609-16

COPYRIGHT 2004 American Academy of Family Physicians

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