Cuts & Grazes

To dress a cut or graze at home:

  • Wash and dry your hands thoroughly.
  • Dirt should always be removed and tweezers can come handy in doing so.
  • Clean the wound under running tap water thoroughly. Remaining dirt should always be removed and tweezers can come handy in doing so.
  • Rinse with water or antiseptic solution if to hand.
  • Pat the area dry with a clean towel.
  • Apply a sterile, adhesive dressing, such as a plaster.

Steri strips are easy to apply and worth keeping in your home pharmacy, particularly if you have children at home. Where limbs are affected ensure movement is preserved in all joints and there is no loss of sensation.

Deep cuts where a joint is involved or you can see bones or tendons or not move or feel a body part need urgent medical attention at A&E.

For all others nurses in practices are able to look after cuts and grazes just as well as in Minor Injuries Units. Furthermore, they have access to your medical records and can check your tetanus status right there and then. So any minor in-hours wounds are well treated in your practice.

If you need help call your GP Surgery orĀ  111. Also see a nurse if your wound has got infected or in case you have sustained an animal or human bite.

NHS