You may have some pain in your chest from the cut (incision) where the tube was put in. For most people, the pain goes away after about 2 weeks. You will have a bandage taped over the wound. Your doctor will remove the bandage and examine the wound in about 2 days.

Instruct the patient to practice taking deep breaths and holding them. To prevent air from re-entering the pleural space during tube removal, instruct the patient to hold the breath or to hum as you remove the tube. 5. After you’ve removed the dressing and sutures, clamp the tube.

For most people, the pain goes away after about 2 weeks. You will have a bandage taped over the wound. Your doctor will remove the bandage and examine the wound in about 2 days. It will take about 3 to 4 weeks for your incision to heal completely.

In the proper management of chest drainage, securing the chest tube tightly and removing it without any complications are both important. In the conventional method, one suture is used to fix the tube, while another, U-shaped suture is used to close the wound after the removal of the tube.

You can take care of it by flushing it and changing the dressing. It is important to flush the drain at least once a day. This prevents clots and helps the fluid drain easily. Change the dressing as often as your child’s doctor or nurse says, and any time it is wet, loose, or dirty.

When a patient is under artificial respiration and meets the conditions for removal of the chest tube, the tube can be removed 5-7 days after insertion while fully observing precautions. In other words, the tube will be removable after a chest X-ray is taken and an open chest is ensured.

Chest staples/sutures, if present, will be removed 2 to 4 weeks after surgery during your follow-‐up clinic visit. If present, change dressing/bandage when soaked/soiled as needed.

Chest tube incision Keep your incision covered with a bandage for 48 hours after your chest tube is removed, unless the bandage gets wet. If it gets wet, change the bandage as soon as possible. After 48 hours, if you don’t have any drainage, you can remove the bandage and keep your incision uncovered.

Chest tube removal. Doctors remove chest tubes when they are no longer necessary, for example when the tube is no longer draining blood or fluid. They will also remove the tube if it becomes blocked or is not working correctly. According to the Chest Foundation, most people need to keep the chest tube in for a few days.

Removal of a chest tube is usually a fairly easy procedure and can be done comfortably in your hospital bed without any anesthesia. The sutures are separated and the tube is then clamped. Your doctor will ask you to take a breath and hold it, and the tube is pulled out.

Minor complications include a subcutaneous hematoma or seroma, anxiety, shortness of breath (dyspnea), and cough (after removing large volume of fluid). In most cases, the chest tube related pain goes away after the chest tube is removed, however, chronic pain related to chest tube induced scarring of the intercostal space is not uncommon.

Steps on How to Change a Chest Tube Dressing Gather the necessary materials, which include sterile gloves, drain sponges, tape (2 to 4 inches), 4×4” gauze sponges, ChloraPrep, and 5X9” Xeroform gauze. Wash the hands with soap and warm water and put on a pair of sterile gloves.