After the Procedure

• Home care



• After the procedure, you need to keep a layer of antibiotic salve and a bandage on the wound. Use an antibiotic ointment that does not include neomycin (Medi-Quik, Neosporin, triple antibiotic). Many people are allergic to neomycin and may develop a rash at the site. Polysporin is a brand that does not contain neomycin.



• Clean the wound once or twice daily with either water or diluted hydrogen peroxide.



• After cleaning the wound, apply the antibiotic salve and bandage.



• These steps are repeated until the wound is healed.


• Misconceptions about healing



• Some people think that wounds need to be open to the air and that this helps healing. Several studies have disproved this and found significantly quicker healing with bandages and antibiotic salve.



• Similarly, vitamin E has been found to slow healing rather than accelerate it, and scars were shown to be worse with vitamin E placed directly on wounds than without it.



• Neosporin is something that is commonly used over wounds, but this can often cause an allergic reaction. For this reason, we recommend the brand name Polysporin to our patients. If patients are allergic to this, studies have shown that simple Vaseline Petroleum Jelly is adequate in most cases.