Caustic pencil
Encyclopedia
A caustic pencil is a short stick of medication
usually containing silver nitrate
, used to cauterize
skin, for instance for the removal of wart
s, or moles. They are not used as a treatment for minor cuts. A frequent source of confusion appears to be the difference between styptic
and caustic pencils.
The silver nitrate in "caustic pencils" is in a solid form at the tip of a wooden stick, much like a long matchstick. When the silver nitrate is applied to a wound or lesion, it dissolves and can accidentally be spread to other undesirable locations where it can cause skin staining and tissue burns. Should this happen, it should be irrigated with copious amounts of water, or preferably saline solution if immediately available, followed by water. It must be used in careful conditions and those using it should wear eye protection should it be splattered from the nose or tracheostomy stoma of a breathing patient.
Silver nitrate sticks are often used for hemostasis
in medical situations where patients are not under general anesthesia, where electrocautery would be painful and inconvenient. One common use of silver nitrate sticks is in Emergency Medicine, particularly in patients presenting with epistaxis. The silver nitrate stick is placed in the affected nares to chemically cauterize the bleeding blood vessel, thus stopping the bleeding.
Medication
A pharmaceutical drug, also referred to as medicine, medication or medicament, can be loosely defined as any chemical substance intended for use in the medical diagnosis, cure, treatment, or prevention of disease.- Classification :...
usually containing silver nitrate
Silver nitrate
Silver nitrate is an inorganic compound with chemical formula . This compound is a versatile precursor to many other silver compounds, such as those used in photography. It is far less sensitive to light than the halides...
, used to cauterize
Cauterization
The medical practice or technique of cauterization is the burning of part of a body to remove or close off a part of it in a process called cautery, which destroys some tissue, in an attempt to mitigate damage, remove an undesired growth, or minimize other potential medical harmful possibilities...
skin, for instance for the removal of wart
Wart
A wart is generally a small, rough growth, typically on a human’s hands or feet but often other locations, that can resemble a cauliflower or a solid blister. They are caused by a viral infection, specifically by human papillomavirus 2 and 7. There are as many as 10 varieties of warts, the most...
s, or moles. They are not used as a treatment for minor cuts. A frequent source of confusion appears to be the difference between styptic
Styptic pencil
An antihemorrhagic agent is a substance that promotes hemostasis . It may also be known as a hemostatic agent....
and caustic pencils.
The silver nitrate in "caustic pencils" is in a solid form at the tip of a wooden stick, much like a long matchstick. When the silver nitrate is applied to a wound or lesion, it dissolves and can accidentally be spread to other undesirable locations where it can cause skin staining and tissue burns. Should this happen, it should be irrigated with copious amounts of water, or preferably saline solution if immediately available, followed by water. It must be used in careful conditions and those using it should wear eye protection should it be splattered from the nose or tracheostomy stoma of a breathing patient.
Silver nitrate sticks are often used for hemostasis
Hemostasis
Hemostasis or haemostasis is a process which causes bleeding to stop, meaning to keep blood within a damaged blood vessel . Most of the time this includes blood changing from a liquid to a solid state. Intact blood vessels are central to moderating blood's tendency to clot...
in medical situations where patients are not under general anesthesia, where electrocautery would be painful and inconvenient. One common use of silver nitrate sticks is in Emergency Medicine, particularly in patients presenting with epistaxis. The silver nitrate stick is placed in the affected nares to chemically cauterize the bleeding blood vessel, thus stopping the bleeding.