Removing Surgical Tape: All Your Questions Answered
Removing surgical tape from skin is a part of almost every wound dressing change. Designed to hold dressings securely in place and medical devices like catheter tubes, surgical tape has to have a strong adhesive to ensure it doesn’t fail despite movement, perspiration, or other bodily fluids compromising it.
This means that removing surgical tape can sometimes be a little uncomfortable. Especially when dealing with sensitive skin around a wound or a patient who isn’t feeling 100%, removing surgical tape quickly and painlessly is important.
If you remove surgical tape adhesive too quickly, this can also cause skin irritations and even take a layer of skin clean off. Getting the technique right is essential to protect the body’s natural healing process and minimise the potential for infection.
This article looks at how to remove surgical tape and the more common problems that arise.
The Best Way to Remove Surgical Tape
When it comes to how to get surgical tape off skin, there are a number of methods designed to cause minimal distress to the patient.
How to Remove Sticky Surgical Tape From Skin
- Going in the direction of hair growth, gently lift a corner of the surgical tape from the skin. You can either use your fingertips or the method below. Try not to use your fingertips as you could scratch or pinch the patient.
- Grasping one end of the surgical tape firmly, pull the tape back slowly. As you pull, hold the tape close to the skin and pull back, rather than pulling ‘upwards’. Pulling upwards can put too much tension on the skin and make the procedure painful.
- As you pull the tape use your other hand to gently but firmly hold the skin taught to reduce pulling.


If you struggle to lift a corner of the surgical tape to get started, try tearing off a small square of tape from a roll and pressing it down on the corner of the tape, then using this as a tab to lift the tape off the skin.
How to Take Surgical Tape off Skin With Alcohol
Alcohol breaks down the glue that some surgical tape uses as an adhesive. Because of this rubbing alcohol can sometimes be used to remove surgical tape. This can be done by either:
- Soaking a cotton wool ball in rubbing alcohol and blotting over the top of the tape, then removing the tape using the steps above after waiting a few minutes for the alcohol to break down the adhesive. Note that this will only work if the surgical tape is not water-resistant, such as dressing retention tape and microporous tape.
- Soaking a cotton wool ball in rubbing alcohol and, after lifting up one corner of the tape, use the cotton wool ball to swipe alcohol across the tape where it meets the skin, slowly pulling the tape away at the same time using the steps above.
Remember that rubbing alcohol shouldn’t be used on broken skin and some patients are sensitive to alcohol. So take care if you remove surgical tape around a wound using this method.
How Do You Get Surgical Tape off Your Skin With Water
If using a non-water-resistant tape like dressing retention tape or fabric strapping, soaking the tape in warm water can make removal easier. Doing so softens the glue between the skin and the tape and makes it easier to pull away from the skin.
If the taped area of the body is an extremity, you could submerge the whole area in water. Otherwise, soak a clean cloth and use it to blot the tape until it’s wet through.
How to Remove Surgical Tape With Oil
Oil-based solutions can be used to soften surgical tape adhesive and make removal less painful. Any type of oily substance can be used, such as
- Vaseline
- Moisturiser
- Oil (coconut, olive, etc.)
To use this method, lift one corner of the surgical tape in the direction of hair growth and, taking a dab of moisturiser, for example, apply it to the area where the tape and skin meet, gently rubbing it into the seam between the two. As you do this, slowly pull the tape back from the skin, applying more moisturiser as needed.
Remember that rubbing alcohol shouldn’t be used on broken skin and some patients are sensitive to alcohol. So take care if you remove surgical tape around a wound using this method.
Removing Tough Tape
When it comes to failsafe tapes, like zinc oxide tape of even more adhesive Sterotape Premium, that seem to stay put no matter what, you might want to combine several approaches. Here’s one approach we’ve heard from our customers.
- Soak a cloth in warm, soapy water and go over the ZO tape, ensuring it becomes soaked through my gently massaging over the top. This is to soften the adhesive.
- Dry the tape a little by patting it with a dry towel.
- Dab a clean cloth in rubbing alcohol and start to peel back the tape, massaging the skin in circular motions where the tape is peeled away. This will help to break down the adhesive.
Our blog covers how to remove zinc oxide tape in more detail.
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How to Remove Clear Surgical Tape
If the surgical tape you’re working with is waterproof or water-resistant, like Sterotape Silk or Sterotape Clear, the soaking methods won’t work. In this case, it’s best to try lifting one corner of the tape and applying rubbing alcohol or something oil-based to gently dislodge the adhesive.
How to Remove Sticky Residue From Surgical Tape
Once you’ve removed surgical tape, you may notice a sticky, gummy residue left on the skin where some of the adhesive remains. Removing surgical tape residue can be even more tricky as adhesive often won’t wash away just with water. Try one of the following for how to get rid of surgical tape residue.
Rubbing alcohol or nail polish remover on a cotton wool ball can be used to dab and swipe away the residue. If you don’t want to use a substance like this, warm soapy water will soften the adhesive, but it might take a few washes to remove it completely.
When can I remove surgical tape?
How long do you leave surgical tape on if you’ve been sent home from the hospital after surgery? Usually, surgical tape covering an incision stays attached to the body for 3-10 days and will fall off on it’s own, so you don’t need to worry about removing it at a specific time.
Surgical tape used to hold wound dressings on need only be changed when the dressing itself is changed.
How to Remove Surgical Tape Painlessly
Pain from pulling the skin, tugging on hair, and disturbing sensitive healing wounds is the main concern when removing surgical tape.
Remember the most important tips for how to remove surgical tape from hair, skin and wounds with as little pain as possible:
When dealing with sports tape such as kinesiology tape, some physios use underwrap to protect the skin below and make removal completely painless.
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How to Remove Surgical Tape From Dog Skin
Veterinarians and pet owners looking after recovering animals will need to remove surgical tape at some point. So how do you remove tape from a furry friend like a dog, cat, or horse?
Rubbing alcohol and some lotions or moisturisers could irritate some pets’ skin, so we recommend using natural substances if you need help removing tough surgical tape. Here are some suggestions
- Vaseline
- Cooking oil
- Pet shampoo or conditioner

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