Project Description:
As of 2023, more than 12 million patients are seen each year in emergency departments (EDs) for wounds and lacerations. The initial step of wound care is irrigation, which removes foreign materials and reduces infection risk. However, wound irrigation is currently a manual process: clinicians must repeatedly irrigate with syringes or punctured saline bottles, which is physically strenuous, time-consuming, and often messy due to saline runoff. Furthermore, the process is subject to user variability, as fluid pressure and volume of saline delivered depends on the clinician. Our poster demonstrates a novel device that provides a hands-free solution to puncture wound irrigation (Figure 1). We demonstrated considerable progress towards standardizing the volume (250mL of fluid per 5 cm of wound dept) and pressure (15-18 psi) of saline delivered. Our device also contains functional features such as an irrigation shield to prevent splashback, all under $25 per unit. We conducted benchtop testing comparing our device to the standard of care (syringe) using a silicone wound packing model to demonstrate debris removal. With this device, ED clinician workload is reduced, infection risks are lowered, and overall quality of care in the ED is improved.
