Occlusive dressing is used to

• A. Airtight dressing over open chest wound
• B. A bandage on arm
• C. A non-airtight dressing for lacerations
• D. A cold compress applied to chest

Answer: (A)

Occlusive dressings provide an airtight seal over a wound, preventing air and moisture from passing through. On an open chest wound, this seal stops air from entering the pleural space with each breath, which helps prevent the wound from evolving into a pneumothorax or worsening a sucking chest wound. In addition to protecting the wound from contamination, the airtight cover is the key reason this is the appropriate choice. The other options involve non-airtight coverage or measures that don’t seal the wound, so they don’t achieve the same purpose.