Visiting Urgent Care vs. Wound Care at Home

There are various types of open wounds and injuries, with some needing only minor treatment and others requiring more than just a bandage. How can you tell you when you need stitches or care from a doctor? In this article, we will discuss when to visit urgent care and when to avoid it by performing wound care and wound closure at home. 

When to Visit Urgent Care for a Wound

If you have a minor cut or scrape, simply clean the wound and apply a bandage. However, if the cut or laceration is deeper and does not close, then you should visit urgent care to get stitches. If you’ve applied pressure to the wound, and the bleeding has not stopped after 10 to 15 minutes, this is a sign that you will need proper care from a doctor.

Additionally, you would need to get stitches if there is a foreign object, dirt, or glass stuck in your wound. Your doctor can also examine the laceration to see if there is damage to a tendon or if a bone is exposed. An urgent care facility will be your best option if the injury is this severe. 

Even if you do not need stitches, you should visit urgent care if your wound is infected. How do you know if it is infected?

• The skin surrounding the wound is inflamed.
• The level of pain is increasing.
• The wound has pus oozing from it.
• You feel nauseous.
• You are experiencing chills or a fever.

In other extreme cases, if your injury was caused by a projectile, a dirty object, or if you were bitten by a wild animal, you should get yourself to an urgent care facility, as those puncture wounds could lead to contamination. Your doctor could give you a tetanus shot and/or antibiotics to help heal from these types of wounds.

Using microMend for Wound Closure at Home

If your cut, skin tear, or laceration does not need the urgent care of a doctor, we recommend using microMend for wound closure. Our wound care system is a great alternative to sutures, staples, and adhesive bandages. Our microMend products have revolutionary Microstaple technology that carefully anchors the device to the skin and protects the incision site.

Here are the benefits of using microMend Emergency Wound Closures:

• You will have secure wound closure like stitches.
• You can apply them like a Band-Aid®.
• The wound heals well with minimal scarring.
• It is quick to use and painless to apply.
• You can easily remove microMend at home.

Not only will you have the tools immediately in your home, but you will also save costs by not going to urgent care or the ER. Check out our microMend Emergency Wound Closure products here.