By Sue Hubbard, M.D. I was just heading out to grab some lunch when a patient of mine, who happens to have three young sons (brings back memories!) walked in with her youngest, who’d been jumping on the bed and bumped his head.
There was a nice little laceration right in the middle of the boy’s forehead. This was the perfect wound that would have previously required a stitch or two, but could now be closed with a liquid adhesive called Dermabond.
Fortunately, this experienced mother had already become a fan of Dermabond, and instead of going to the emergency room, she came by the office for a fairly easy procedure to close the wound. Smart mom!
When Dermabond was released in the early 2000’s, it took me awhile to get used to how easy it made wound closure. Dermabond is a liquid skin adhesive that holds the edges of a wound together. The best thing is that it’s painless and can be used on small superficial lacerations.
Even for a wiggly toddler, in most cases a laceration can be closed while the parent is holding a child still. This is certainly not the case when stitches are required.
Dermabond forms a polymer, which causes adhesion of the wound edges, making it the perfect for the “clean, straight, small” lacerations I often see among my patients. The classic examples are on the edge of the eye, the chin, the forehead or the scalp. In studies, the cosmetic outcome was comparable to suturing, and in my opinion, for those small lacerations Dermabond is preferable.
We cleaned the boy’s wound, laid him down (he stayed perfectly still) and within 5 minutes the laceration was closed and a happy 2-year-old waltzed out of the office. Not a tear was shed, but I did have a little residual glue on my finger!
The sealant wears off on its own in 5-10 days. Once it comes off, I always remind parents to use sunscreen on the area, which also helps prevent scarring.
Happily, this little guy left while singing, “Dr. Sue said, no more little boys jumping on the bed!”
Dr. Sue Hubbard is a nationally known pediatrician and co-host of “The Kid’s Doctor” radio show. Submit questions at www.kidsdr.com.
This was printed in the September 22, 2013 – October 5, 2013 Edition
