Background:
Facial lacerations are a common presentation to emergency departments in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand. Numerous factors may influence management, such as age, patient preference, local practices, staff experience, guidelines, and more. It is known that facial lacerations closed with glue or steristrips experience a significantly higher rate of wound dehiscence compared to closure using sutures. Poor management and scarring of facial wounds can have a profound impact on facial aesthetics. Review by a health professional experienced in wound care can help ascertain the degree of injury and guide suitable management. This may include simple dressings, steri-strips, glue, sutures or referral to a surgical team.
Aim:
This literature review aims to examine publicly available Australasian hospital guidelines to determine whether there is appropriate guidance for facial laceration management.
Methods:
A comprehensive search was conducted using Pubmed, Scopus, Google scholar and Australasian health databases. Literature included discusses facial lacerations in Australasian Emergency Departments and management techniques.
Results:
Findings reveal a paucity in available guidelines for the management of facial lacerations. Available guidelines are often non-specific regarding wound assessment and discuss management generally without specifying what repair technique is indicated for differing injury types. Furthermore, not all guidelines discuss referral to a surgical specialty. As a result, health professionals may inadvertently make decisions that are not in the best interests of wound healing when experienced colleagues are not present and the injury is not discussed with a surgical specialty.
Conclusion:
This review provides an overview of the available guidelines for health professionals when caring for a patient with traumatic facial lacerations. This research highlights the need for the introduction of simple, accessible, evidence-based guidelines to help guide the management of face lacerations. This may prevent health professionals initiating inappropriate management rather than referring to surgical teams.