While sutures can help wounds heal and reduce scarring, it’s sometimes difficult to tell whether such an open wound needs sutures. If you really can’t make up your mind and don’t want to go to the hospital in vain, you can use the method described below to determine whether an open wound requires professional treatment.

Reasons for Immediate Medical Attention

Elevate the injured area above the heart to reduce bleeding. Use a clean cotton cloth or a slightly damp towel to gently press the wound for five minutes. Then remove the cotton or towel and check whether the wound is still bleeding.

• If the bleeding still doesn’t stop, don’t try other methods and go to the hospital for treatment immediately.
• If the bleeding is very severe and blood keeps pouring out of the wound, call 120 immediately. This may be life-threatening.

Check the wound for foreign objects. If there is a foreign object in the wound, you need to seek medical attention immediately. Because there is a risk of infection if there is a foreign body in the wound, it is also necessary to determine whether and how the foreign body can be safely removed. In addition, it is also necessary to determine whether the wound needs to be sutured.

• Do not remove foreign objects from the wound without authorization. Sometimes these foreign objects happen to stop the bleeding. Once something gets inserted into the wound, you need to see an emergency room immediately.

If you are bitten by a person or animal, see a doctor immediately. These types of wounds are highly susceptible to infection, and you may need vaccinations and antibodies to prevent infection. So regardless of whether the wound requires stitches or not, you should receive professional treatment in this case.

Consider whether sutures are needed based on the injured area. If the injured area is on the face, hands, mouth, or vulva, you still need to see a doctor, firstly for cosmetic reasons, and secondly to allow the wound to heal better.

Determine Whether the Wound Requires Sutures

Understand why the wound is stitched. The most common reasons for suturing are:

• The wound is too big to heal on its own. Suturing the edges of the wound with a needle and thread can help the wound heal.
• Prevent infection. If the wound is a large gaping hole, sewing it shut with a needle and thread can minimize the risk of infection. Because open wounds, especially large wounds like this, are most susceptible to infection.
• Suturing wounds can reduce scarring. If the injured part is located on the face, etc., it may affect the appearance, so it is even more necessary to suture the wound.

Look how deep the wound is. If the wound depth exceeds 0.5 cm, suturing is necessary. If the wound is deep enough that you can see yellow fatty tissue or even bone, you definitely need to see a doctor.

Look how wide the wound is. Did your wounds close together on their own? Or does it require external force to gather it together to cover the tissue in the wound? If the wound requires external force to close, that means suturing is necessary. Closing the wound with a needle or thread can help speed up wound healing by closing the wound.

Look at the location of the wound. If it is an open wound and the injured area is in a frequently moved area, it should be sutured to prevent the wound from opening again when the body moves and the skin stretches. For example, suturing is required when the wound is located on the knee joint or finger (especially the knuckle), but it is not necessary to suture when the wound is located on the thigh muscle.

Ask your doctor to give you the tetanus vaccine. The tetanus vaccine is valid for no more than ten years, so you will need to get vaccinated again after the expiry date. If you have an open wound and you had a tetanus shot ten years ago, you still have to go to the hospital.

• After arriving at the hospital, you can ask the doctor to see if your wound needs sutures.

Tips

• If you still don’t know whether the wound needs to be seen by a doctor or sutured, it’s better to go to the hospital just in case.
• If you are worried about leaving scars, it is recommended that you go to the hospital for stitches. Because suturing the wound can avoid leaving very obvious scars and help the wound heal smoothly.
• Once the wound continues to bleed or becomes contaminated, you must go to the hospital for treatment.
• Vaccines must be revaccinated after their expiry date to avoid serious infection and disease.