Methods and products for reducing tissue trauma using water-absorbing stress-distributing materials

A method of minimizing stress to tissue of a patient during a surgical procedure, the method comprising:

• providing a surgical incise drape comprising a flexible polymeric film having opposite first and second major surfaces and a layer of a pressure sensitive adhesive on at least a portion of the first major surface of the flexible polymeric film;
• providing a water-absorbing stress-distributing layer comprising a hydrogel, a hydrocolloid, or a combination thereof;
• wherein the water-absorbing stress-distributing layer has opposite first and second major surfaces and wherein the water-absorbing stress-distributing layer is at least 2 mm and no more than 8 mm thick between the first and second major surfaces;
• attaching the first major surface of the water-absorbing stress-distributing layer to the second major surface of the flexible polymeric film of the surgical incise drape so that the surgical incise drape and the water-absorbing stress-distributing layer are attached together to form a stress-distributing composite;
• adhering the stress-distributing composite to the patient by contacting the pressure sensitive adhesive layer on the first major surface of the polymeric film of the stress-distributing composite to the patient such that the stress-distributing composite conforms to the shape of the tissue of the patient;
• making an incision through the stress-distributing composite into the tissue;
• and
• retracting the tissue along the incision using a retractor;
• wherein the stress-distributing composite reduces stress to the incision and tissue trauma by distributing the forces caused by retraction;
• and
• wherein the stress-distributing composite undergoes stretching and/or compression during retraction and protects the skin and underlying tissue from trauma due to compressive and/or stretching forces during tissue retraction.