Mepitel can be used by lay persons under supervision of health care professionals.
1. Cleanse the wound in accordance with normal procedures and dry the surrounding skin thoroughly.
2. Choose a size of Mepitel that covers the wound and the surrounding skin by at least 2 cm. If required, Mepitel can be cut.
3. While holding the larger protective film, remove the smaller one. Moisten gloves to avoid adherence to Mepitel.
4. Apply Mepitel over the wound and remove the remaining protective film. Smooth Mepitel in place onto the surrounding skin, ensuring a good seal. If more than one piece of Mepitel is required, overlap the dressings, making sure that the pores are not blocked.
5. Apply a secondary absorbent dressing pad on top of Mepitel. In contoured or jointed areas (e.g. under arm, under breast, inner elbow, groin, deep wounds), ensure sufficient padding is applied to keep the Mepitel held flat against the surface of the wound.
6. Fix in place with a suitable fixation device.

Mepitel can be used under compression bandages.
Mepitel can be used in conjunction with Negative Pressure Wound Therapy (NPWT).
Mepitel can be used in combination with gels.
When the outer absorbent dressing is saturated it should be changed with Mepitel left in place.
Mepitel may be left in place for up to 14 days depending on the condition of the wound and surrounding skin, or as indicated by clinical practice. To prevent maceration, exudate should pass freely through the dressing and the holes should not be blocked.
When Mepitel is used in conjunction with the NPWT systems, follow the clinician’s recommendation regarding frequency of change.

Precautions

• If you see signs of infection e.g. fever or the wound or surrounding skin becoming red, warm or swollen, consult a health care professional for appropriate treatment.
• When used on partial thickness burns with high risk of rapid granulation or after facial resurfacing: avoid placing pressure upon the dressing, lift and reposition the dressing at least every second day.
• When used on bleeding wounds or wounds with high viscosity exudate, Mepitel should be covered with a moist absorbent dressing pad.
• When Mepitel is used for the fixation of skin grafts and protection of blisters, the dressing should not be changed before the fifth day post application.
• Do not use Mepitel on patient and/or user with known hypersensitivity to the ingoing materials/components of the product.
• Do not reuse. If reused performance of the product may deteriorate, cross contamination may occur.
• Sterile. Do not use if inner package is damaged or opened prior to use. Do not re-sterilise.

Warnings

When Mepitel is used in conjunction with NPWT systems, always document the numbers or cut pieces of Mepitel used in the patient’s record to ensure that no Mepitel is left in the wound when the dressing is changed.