Pearls in Pediatric Wound Management

Lacerations are one of the most commonly encountered pediatric problems in the acute care setting. The majority of lacerations in children can be repaired without subspecialty consultation and therefore have become a staple of urgent care medicine. Although most pediatric lacerations are small and heal without sequelae, mismanagement can lead to scaring and infection. Therefore, maintenance of wound care skills by urgent care providers is crucial to providing high-quality wound care. The fundamentals of laceration management are relatively unchanged; however, there have been considerable advances in aspects of wound care that have yet to be adopted because of a failure to relinquish traditional beliefs. The goals of this article are to review the general principles of wound management in children and to dispel a few deep-seated myths.