Word parts
What it means
A planned cut made with a scalpel or other tool. After surgery the edges are closed with sutureSOO-cherA stitch, or the thread used to stitch, that holds the edges of a wound or incision together.Full entry , staples, glue or strips and heal over weeks. Nurses describe how well the edges meet (approximation) and whether there is redness, swelling, drainage or separation. An incisional hernia is a bulge through a weak spot in an old surgical scar.
For the nurse
Check the incision each shift for warmth, redness, swelling, drainage, pus or opening of the edges. Teach the client to hold a pillow against a belly or chest incision when coughing, and to report fever, increasing pain or foul drainage.
In a chart
"Midline abdominal incision well approximated with staples; no redness or drainage."
At a glance
| Spanish | incisión |
|---|---|
| Also written | incisions, incisional |
Easy to confuse with
laceration
A cut or tear in the skin or other tissue, often with jagged edges.
Related terms
postoperative
Describing the time after surgery, from the end of the operation until recovery.
laceration
A cut or tear in the skin or other tissue, often with jagged edges.
suture
A stitch, or the thread used to stitch, that holds the edges of a wound or incision together.
drainage
Fluid that flows out of a wound, body cavity or tube, or the removal of that fluid.