To compare the effects of non-woven cotton of surgical dressing and medical gauze in surgical cavity wounds.

A total of 118 patients with surgical cavity wounds in Run Run Shaw Hospital Affiliated to Medical College of Zhejiang University from March to August in 2017 were recruited and divided into two groups by random digits table method, 58 in the observation group and 60 in the control group. The wounds were filled with non-woven cotton of surgical dressing in the observation group and medical gauze was received in the control group. The wound healing, drainage, surrounding skin maceration, the amount of fluid absorption, the pieces of dressings used, residues of yarn, the time of dressing change and the costs of treatment were compared between the two groups.

There was no significant difference in the healing rate, surrounding skin macerations and the cost between the two groups (P>0.05). The intervention group was superior to the control group in the following indicators: the none-residual rate of yarn in the wound were 100.0% (282/282), the median amount of liquid absorbed were 5.43 g, the median pieces of dressings used were 14.00 pieces, the median time of dressing change were 98.00 s, while those index were 70.7% (208/294), 4.29 g, 19.50 pieces, 152.00 s in the control group, compared to the control group, the observation group showed a higher none-residual rate of yarn, more liquid absorbed, less dressing used, less dressing change time in the observation group, the difference was statistically significant (χ² value was 96.968, Z values were 2.199, 2.364, 3.852, P<0.05 or 0.01).

The non-woven cotton of surgical dressing has no residual yarn in the wound, more liquid absorption, less pieces of gauze, and shorten dressing change time than the medical gauze. It can be used as a kind of superior surgical drainage gauze.

Drainage; Cavity wound; Medical gauze