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Island dressing sizes are not set by a standard. Each manufacturer chooses its own overall dimensions, so the chart below lists the sizes two manufacturers publish, as printed in their product documents. An island dressing is a bordered dressing: an absorbent pad sits in the centre of an adhesive-backed border, so the number on the box is the overall size, not the pad size. This page gives general product information only and is not medical advice; a clinician decides which dressing suits a particular wound.
Island dressing sizes chart
Overall size is the full dressing including the adhesive border. Sizes are printed in inches by the manufacturers; centimetre values for Halyard are as printed in its sales sheet.
Halyard Health (Owens & Minor) non-adherent adhesive island dressings, sterile
| Overall size (in) | Overall size (cm) | Absorbency option |
|---|---|---|
| 2 x 3 | 5.1 x 7.6 | Standard |
| 4 x 4 | 10.2 x 10.2 | Standard |
| 4 x 5 | 10.2 x 12.7 | Standard |
| 4 x 8 | 10.2 x 20.3 | Standard |
| 4 x 10 | 10.2 x 25.4 | Standard |
| 4 x 14 | 10.2 x 35.6 | Standard |
| 6 x 6 | 15.2 x 15.2 | Standard |
| 4 x 6 | 10.2 x 15.2 | Plus |
| 6 x 7 | 15.2 x 17.8 | Plus |
Source: Halyard Health sales sheet 008314, “Non-Adherent Adhesive Island Dressings, Sterile”, checked 2026-10-30. The sheet describes the Plus option as offering increased fluid absorption. It does not print pad dimensions.
McKesson-brand island dressings: overall size and pad size
| Manufacturer # | Overall size (in) | Pad size (in) | Sterility |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16-89244 | 4 x 4 | 2 x 2 | Non-sterile |
| 16-89266 | 6 x 6 | 4 x 4 | Non-sterile |
| 16-89041 | 4 x 10 | 2 x 8 | Sterile |
Source: McKesson product pages for items 883053, 883055 and 488925, checked 2026-10-30. All three are listed as not made with natural rubber latex.
How to read the chart: overall size versus pad size
The first number pair is the whole dressing; the pad is smaller. In the three McKesson listings the pad is 2 inches shorter and 2 inches narrower than the overall size, which works out to a border of 1 inch on each side (simple subtraction from the listed figures). That border is adhesive and does not absorb, so a 4 x 4 inch island dressing has a 2 x 2 inch pad. The Halyard sheet does not print pad sizes, so the same arithmetic cannot be applied to its dressings.
The same overall size can therefore carry a different pad from one brand or product line to another. Read the pad size on the product listing or box rather than assuming it from the overall size.
Checking a size against the product label
The manufacturer documents describe island dressings as a bordered gauze dressing with a non-adherent pad that works as a primary or secondary dressing. Neither source gives size-selection rules, and this chart does not either: which dressing suits a particular wound is a clinical decision. What a reader can check from the product documents is whether the overall size and the pad size are the figures listed, and whether the product is sterile or non-sterile.
Equivalence notes
- Inches and centimetres: 1 inch is 2.54 cm. Halyard prints both, for example 4 x 4 in as 10.2 x 10.2 cm.
- Standard and Plus: Halyard sells a Plus option for increased fluid absorption, and in its sheet the Plus sizes are 4 x 6 and 6 x 7 inches.
- Sterile and non-sterile: both appear in the McKesson listings above; the Halyard island dressings are sterile.
What is island dressing?
An island dressing is a wound dressing with an absorbent pad set in the middle of an adhesive border, so it holds itself in place without separate tape. Halyard describes its version as an all-in-one, general-purpose bordered gauze dressing with a non-adherent contact layer, an absorptive pad and a non-woven adhesive border with rounded edges, and McKesson describes its items as an adhesive border combined with a non-adherent gauze pad, an alternative to gauze and tape. For the wider family of dressing types, see what a wound dressing is.
Common mix-ups
- Overall size versus pad size. A listing for a 4 x 10 inch dressing describes the whole dressing; the pad in the McKesson example is 2 x 8 inches.
- Island dressing versus a plain pad. A pad has no adhesive border and needs a separate way to hold it on. See what an ABD pad is.
- Island dressing versus other dressing types. Hydrocolloid and alginate dressings are different materials with their own size conventions: see hydrocolloid wound care and calcium alginate dressings.
Check your product’s labelling. Sizes, pad dimensions, sterility and materials vary by manufacturer and by product line; the packaging and the manufacturer’s instructions for use are the reference for the dressing in your hands. For dressing categories sold by a medical supply store, see wound dressings.
FAQ
What is island dressing?
It is a dressing with an absorbent, non-adherent pad in the centre of an adhesive border, used as a primary or secondary dressing according to the manufacturers’ descriptions. The border holds it in place without extra tape.
What sizes do island dressings come in?
Halyard lists nine overall sizes from 2 x 3 inches to 4 x 14 inches and 6 x 7 inches; McKesson lists 4 x 4, 6 x 6 and 4 x 10 inches among its items. There is no standard size set.
Is the size on the box the pad size?
No. In the McKesson listings the stated size is the overall dressing and the pad is smaller, with a 1 inch border on each side.
Sources
- Halyard Health (Owens & Minor), sales sheet 008314, Non-Adherent Adhesive Island Dressings, Sterile: halyardhealth.com, checked 2026-10-30.
- McKesson product pages: 16-89041, 16-89244, 16-89266, checked 2026-10-30.
