Wound Care Certification Exam Study
Guide Question and answers 100%
correct 2025/2026
Vesicle - correct answer ✔Similar to pustule but may be a cavity or filled with clear, serous,
hemorrhagic, or pustular fluid
Pustule - correct answer ✔Elevation of skin containing pus, <0.5 cm
Macule - correct answer ✔Flat area different in color from surrounding tissue (<0.5 cm)
Papule - correct answer ✔small, solid, raised lesion on surface of the skin
Yeast infection key characteristics - correct answer ✔Tender, pruritic maculopapular rash with
characteristic satelite lesions
May be caused by exposure to moisture (e.g. diaphoresis, incontinence, skin folds), poor glcyemic
control, steroid or abx use, immune compromise
What are the phases of wound healing? - correct answer ✔Hemostasis (blood clot formation)
Inflammatory phase (chemotaxis, migration of WBCs, macrophages, fibroblasts)
Proliferation (formation of provisional matrix, synthesis of collagen and collagen matrix, migration and
proliferation of keratinocytes)
Maturation/Remodeling (wound closure, scar formation)
Partial thickness vs full thickness - correct answer ✔Partial = epidermis or dermis involved
, Full = adipose tissue or deeper
How do you treat a patient with pressure injuries to both trochanters and sacrum? - correct answer
✔Use pressure redistribution mattress or lateral rotation low air-loss mattress
Role of protein in wound healing - correct answer ✔Protein is necessary for formation for collagen,
connective tissue that is critical to wound healing
Role of hydration in wound healing - correct answer ✔Maintains skin barrier, enables epithelial
migration during epithelialization phase of wound healing, improves perfusion and reduces blood
viscosity
Role of zinc in wound healing - correct answer ✔Collagen formation, protein synthesis, cell membrane
and host defenses
How and when is a wound culture performed? - correct answer ✔- How: 5-second swab (Levine
technique--currently the most commonly recommended technique): wound bed flushed with normal
saline to remove exudate and normal skin flora (e.g. staph epidermidis); sterile swab moistened with
saline;
one-square centimeter area of viable tissue swabbed for 5 seconds with enough force to produce
exudate. Provides organism identification and sensitivity data.
Punch biopsy culture: #3 dermal punch or sterile scissors used to obtain tissue sample that is sent to lab
—lab grinds the sample and mixes it with diluent to form fluid that is used to determine colony counts
as well as to ID organisms and sensitivities.
Advantage: quantitative and qualitative data so can use to diagnose infection. Disadvantage: more
expensive; many nurses not covered to do this type of culture; many labs unable to process this type of
specimen
Guide Question and answers 100%
correct 2025/2026
Vesicle - correct answer ✔Similar to pustule but may be a cavity or filled with clear, serous,
hemorrhagic, or pustular fluid
Pustule - correct answer ✔Elevation of skin containing pus, <0.5 cm
Macule - correct answer ✔Flat area different in color from surrounding tissue (<0.5 cm)
Papule - correct answer ✔small, solid, raised lesion on surface of the skin
Yeast infection key characteristics - correct answer ✔Tender, pruritic maculopapular rash with
characteristic satelite lesions
May be caused by exposure to moisture (e.g. diaphoresis, incontinence, skin folds), poor glcyemic
control, steroid or abx use, immune compromise
What are the phases of wound healing? - correct answer ✔Hemostasis (blood clot formation)
Inflammatory phase (chemotaxis, migration of WBCs, macrophages, fibroblasts)
Proliferation (formation of provisional matrix, synthesis of collagen and collagen matrix, migration and
proliferation of keratinocytes)
Maturation/Remodeling (wound closure, scar formation)
Partial thickness vs full thickness - correct answer ✔Partial = epidermis or dermis involved
, Full = adipose tissue or deeper
How do you treat a patient with pressure injuries to both trochanters and sacrum? - correct answer
✔Use pressure redistribution mattress or lateral rotation low air-loss mattress
Role of protein in wound healing - correct answer ✔Protein is necessary for formation for collagen,
connective tissue that is critical to wound healing
Role of hydration in wound healing - correct answer ✔Maintains skin barrier, enables epithelial
migration during epithelialization phase of wound healing, improves perfusion and reduces blood
viscosity
Role of zinc in wound healing - correct answer ✔Collagen formation, protein synthesis, cell membrane
and host defenses
How and when is a wound culture performed? - correct answer ✔- How: 5-second swab (Levine
technique--currently the most commonly recommended technique): wound bed flushed with normal
saline to remove exudate and normal skin flora (e.g. staph epidermidis); sterile swab moistened with
saline;
one-square centimeter area of viable tissue swabbed for 5 seconds with enough force to produce
exudate. Provides organism identification and sensitivity data.
Punch biopsy culture: #3 dermal punch or sterile scissors used to obtain tissue sample that is sent to lab
—lab grinds the sample and mixes it with diluent to form fluid that is used to determine colony counts
as well as to ID organisms and sensitivities.
Advantage: quantitative and qualitative data so can use to diagnose infection. Disadvantage: more
expensive; many nurses not covered to do this type of culture; many labs unable to process this type of
specimen
