Medical Adhesive Tape: What to Know

If you’ve ever been to the doctor’s office or an emergency room, you might have noticed something interesting out of the corner of your eye—tape. Just like the tape you have in your junk drawer at home for various uses, medical adhesive tape sometimes referred to as surgical tape, is used to aid physicians in various uses. Which is what we’ll be going over today. 
healthcare adhesive tape

Tales from the Tape – The Kinds & Their Usage 

Urgent & Emergency Uses

In situations that require urgent or emergency medical care, the medical team on duty will use two distinctive types of adhesive tape. The first of these is what’s known as Micropore adhesive tape. This tape is usually utilized to secure bandages and dressings to the skin and allow the area to breathe. This ensures that the skin that the tape is attached to won’t become irritated. The ability of this tape to breathe streamlines the healing process and makes removal easy and without any pain whatsoever. Transpore Polythelyn Tape comes into use when there are wet surfaces and items such as tubing and dressings that need to be attached to the patient. Because this tape doesn’t stick to such items as surgical gloves, it’s commonly found in the ER. 

Adhesive Tape for Athletics 

Of course, emergency rooms and clinics are not the only locations that benefit from the use of medical adhesive tape. Many athletes use adhesive tape to either prevent injury from occurring or protect against injuries that have already occurred. The most common of these is what’s known as Zinc Oxide Tape. Many athletes use zinc oxide tape to stabilize injuries, promote healing at an accelerated rate and prevent soft tissue damage from occurring. Zinc oxide tape tends to last for long periods of time and can withstand high moisture levels. Another brand of tape you might see come into play on the field is what’s known as durable cloth tape. It’s ideal for long-term usage because oil its flexible nature and ability to breathe. More often than not, this tape is used to secure splints. Athletes that take part in aquatic sports might utilize waterproof tape to keep bandaged areas dry. These only work when applied to dry skin, so apply them before engaging in any activity that might be close to or in water. 

Sarasota Medical Products 

Whether you run a small clinic or simply need adhesive tape to maintain your current quality of life, the experts at Sarasota Medical Products can ensure that you always stay supplied for rates that are better than the industry average. For more information, visit us at sarasotamedical.com