Traditional and complementary treatment use in wound care: A descriptive study in Turkey

This study was conducted to determine the use of traditional and complementary treatment in wound care and the opinions of individuals in Turkey.

The descriptive study was completed with 536 adult individuals. The research data were collected using the "Personal Information Form", "Questionnaire on Traditional and Complementary Treatment Methods Used in Wound Care" and "Questionnaire on Opinions Regarding the Use of Traditional and Complementary Treatment in Wound Care" prepared in line with the literature. Descriptive statistics were used in the evaluation of the data.

When a wound occurs on the body, 31 % of the participants reported that they first applied traditional and complementary treatment. It was determined that the participants experienced surgical wounds (55.7 %) and burn wounds (46.1 %) the most. The first three biological-based approaches used by individuals in wound care were hypericum perforatum (60.8 %), aloe vera (39.6 %), and honey (36.8 %). In other approaches used by individuals in wound care, the first three methods are prayer (54.1 %), vaseline application (47.1 %), and massage (37.8 %), respectively. In addition, 64.7 % of the individuals reported that they thought these methods were useful in wound care, 60.1 % reported that they accelerated healing, and 46.8 % reported that they prevented scarring.

It was determined that individuals commonly used various traditional and complementary treatment methods in wound care. It is also noteworthy that these methods are highly accepted by individuals. Therefore, it is important for nurses, who play a key role in wound care, to know the methods commonly used in society and to follow the developments in this field.