Hemovac Drain

What is a Hemovac drain?

A Hemovac drain is a device that removes fluid from surgical wounds. It consists of a thin tube that runs from the area of the surgical wound to a small container. The container creates suction that pulls fluid from the wound area.

Draining fluid from a surgical wound area reduces the risk of a surgical site infection. The drain stays in place after you go home. You wear the drain under your clothes. You may need to keep the drain in place for several days up to two weeks after your surgery.

Your surgeon or a care team member will remove the drain as part of your follow-up care. You’ll need to care for the drain until your surgeon or care team member removes it.

You may feel anxious about keeping the drain working like it should. Your care team will explain how to take care of the drain, the incision and your surgical wound.

When would I need a Hemovac drain?

Surgeons often use Hemovac drains to support recovery after procedures like:

• Abdominal surgery, such as a laparotomy or hernia repair surgery
• Breast surgery, like breast cancer surgery, or cosmetic breast surgery, like breast augmentation
• Orthopedic procedures, like a total knee replacement or fixing a broken bone
• Surgery to treat pleural effusion

How does a Hemovac drain work?

A Hemovac drain is a type of closed drain. That means it uses negative pressure to pull fluid from a surgical wound. Negative pressure works by creating a difference in air pressure. The difference is how the tube pulls fluid from the surgical wound.

Hemovac drain containers have flexible sides and springs inside. You create negative pressure when you push on the drain sides, so they squeeze together. This creates a difference in air pressure so the tube in your surgical wound can pull fluid into the container.

How to care for a Hemovac drain

Your care team will show you how to care for the Hemovac drain and the area around the drain tube. They’ll also give you written directions to follow. Don’t hesitate to ask questions if you don’t understand any part of the process.

You’ll need to collect fluid from the drain twice a day. If possible, try to drain the Hemovac at the same time each day.

The first step is to collect the supplies you’ll need, including:

• A measuring cup
• Mild soap and water to clean the area around the drain tube
• Gauze or a clean, soft cloth
• A record sheet to log information about the fluid

The next step is simple but very important: Wash your hands. You may use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer to clean your hands. Clean hands reduce the risk of infection.

To empty the container, you:

1. Pull the drain stopper out of the container. The drain stopper is next to the tube carrying fluid from the surgical wound.
2. Empty fluid from the container into the measuring cup.
3. Write down the amount of fluid in the cup.
4. Write down the fluid color. The fluid will be red at first and then become light yellow as it starts to heal.
5. Pour the drainage fluid into the toilet or down the sink.
6. Push down on the container until it appears flat. This is how you re-establish suction, so the drain keeps pulling fluid out.
7. Replace the drain stopper.
8. Stop pushing down on the container.
9. Wash your hands again.

How to care for the Hemovac dressing and your skin

Your care team may tape gauze dressing over the spot where the tube enters your skin. You should change that dressing at least once day or if it gets wet. You’ll need to remove the dressing and clean the area around the drain tube after you empty the container. To do that, you:

1. Gently remove the gauze dressing.
2. Use mild soap and water to clean the skin up to 4 inches around the drain tube.
3. Always clean using a circular motion and moving away from the tube. That’s how you reduce the risk that bacteria on your skin will get into the spot where the tube comes out of your body.
4. Use clean water to rinse away soap.
5. Let the area dry.
6. Place clean gauze over the tube site.
7. Use surgical adhesive tape to keep the gauze in place.

When should I call a healthcare provider?

Call your care team or your surgeon if:

• The fluid suddenly stops draining into the container
• It suddenly changes color, like becoming red again or milky white
• There’s redness or swelling where the tube comes out of your skin (these symptoms, along with drainage that becomes milky white, may be signs of an infection)
• The tube in your skin comes loose

What’s the difference between a Jackson-Pratt drain and a Hemovac drain?

Both drains use negative pressure to draw fluid from surgical wounds. The main difference is that a Hemovac drain can hold more fluid than a Jackson-Pratt drain. A Hemovac drain holds about 500 milliliters (mL). A Jackson-Pratt drain holds about 25 to 50 mL.