Looking for a Gauze Guide? Here’s a Medical Gauze Analysis

When someone mentions gauze, they can mean many things. Afterall, gauze is used throughout all walks of life. However, medical gauze is used for one thing and one thing only. Treating wounds. Whether it be a minor scrape or cut, to a full-on bullet wound. Medical gauze is a lifesaver. These bandages are highly absorbent and help keep the pressure on wounds. It also keeps them from getting infected or irritated. If you need medical gauze, but don’t know what type to get, read through the rest of this article. We talk about all the specific types of gauze, what they’re used for, and more.

The first type of medical gauze we’re going to mention is woven gauze. This particular type of gauze is very loose, which therefore allows a lot of liquid to be absorbed. If you need a certain shape or length of this material, you’re out of luck. Woven gauze won’t cut, instead, it will simply fall apart. Because of the way it’s raveled up, this particular type of gauze is a one size fits all type of item. You shouldn’t cut this and then apply to a wound because the various pieces of fabric that come off of it may contaminate the wound you are trying to protect. That can make things complicated and very unpleasant for the victim.

The next type of gauze that a lot of people use is gauze that isn’t woven. It may look like it is, but in fact, it isn’t. Instead, this type of gauze is fused together. Pressed together in the factory and condensed, making for a tight seal. This gauze style tends to absorb a lot more liquid than its predecessors, simply because the pattern is so tight. Fortunately, this particular type of gauze won’t actually shed. If you cut it, it’s less likely to leave a whole bunch of lint and fabric behind. Remember, this material may contaminate your skin if you’re not careful.

Petrolatum dressings are pieces of gauze that have been coated in a dressing of some kind. Sometimes the dressing can be petroleum or other pharmaceutical items. Typically this type of gauze is intent upon stopping any and all air from reaching your wound. Not only will this stop bacteria from bursting its way in, but it will actually keep the medications you administered in the wound rather than leaking everywhere.

Gauze rolls are generally a secondary type of thing. Most of the time they’re added on top of the previously mentioned types of gauze as a safety. Most people use them to put pressure on specific points of their body to relieve pain or soreness. Gauze rolls can be used to prevent itching, and so much more. Just do keep in mind that they’re not very absorbent, and are typically attached to your body with tape. Some gauze rolls will actually use clips as well.

Before using medical gauze, you need to make sure it’s sterile. Sterile medical gauze is what you use to directly treat wounds, whereas non sterile options are usually a secondary. Gauze rolls are a perfect example of this second type. Sanitary medical gauze is generally packaged away in individual pieces. They’re vacuum-packed and free of any and all harmful bacteria. They’re perfectly safe for use. Non-sanitary options on the other hand are not. They may actually do some harm if pressed right up against the wound. Not only will most of them not absorb well, but they may introduce bacteria and promote infection. 

One thing you should always keep an eye out for is infection. In order to determine whether or not you think you see an infection, you need to ask yourself a variety of questions. The first being about redness around the wounded area. If the wounded area is surrounded by red color skin, you may have an infection. If the said red-colored area is always inflamed and swollen, chances are you got an infection. If the area in question is painful to touch or is just super sensitive, you need to see a doctor. If the area smells you probably have a pretty bad infection. The same goes for if it outputs green or yellow discharge. Also, a fever is a sure sign of infection. Contact your doctor or go to the emergency room if you observe any of these symptoms.

Gauze pads can be found in a lot of medical first aid kits. They’re useful in a lot of situations and have dozens of uses. They can be used as primary and secondary care. To clarify, you can use them to directly treat wounds, or just as a security layer. Gauze pads tend to not shed or leak lint and fabric. This makes them ideal for a lot of situations, whether it be padding or actual emergency first aid. Usually, pads can be really absorbent, but it typically depends on the material they’re made out of. There are a lot of different kinds of medical gauze pads out there, and they all tend to differ based on type and manufacturer. For more information on gauze pads, see some of our other articles. Medical gauze pads are super handy when you know how to use them.

If you are suffering from a serious wound, we recommend you either visit your local emergency room or call the emergency line. Do keep in mind that this article is not intent upon being medical advice, nor is it intent upon being legal advice. We simply want to clarify what the different types of medical gauze are. For in-depth guides on how to use them, we recommend you check out some of our other videos. We hope this guide helped you figure out which medical gauze is best for you. Stay safe, and stay healthy. Thanks.