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A Robert Jones bandage (also called a Jones dressing) is a thick, layered compression bandage: a deep layer of soft padding, a conforming bandage over it and, in veterinary practice, a cohesive outer wrap. It is used on limbs in human orthopaedics, where it is best known as a dressing after knee replacement, and in veterinary medicine as a supportive limb bandage.
This page describes products and general use; it is not medical advice.
Who uses it: orthopaedic and surgical teams, veterinary clinicians and veterinary students, and the staff who stock the padding and bandage materials involved.
What a Robert Jones bandage (or Jones dressing) is
The defining feature is bulk. Rather than a thin dressing held in place, the bandage builds a thick cushion of padding around the limb and covers it with an outer wrap. Charnley’s original description, as quoted in a 2013 randomised trial, used three layers of wool and three layers of domette (Pinsornsak and Chumchuen, Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research 2013;471(5):1677-1681). A University of Bristol veterinary clinical skills sheet describes it as “a more an advanced skill than other types of bandage”.
Layers and materials
The layers differ a little between settings: a modified human orthopaedic dressing and a veterinary limb bandage.
| Layer or part | Material named | Setting |
|---|---|---|
| Primary dressing | Sterile gauze over the wound | Human, knee replacement trial |
| Padding | Webril padding, then thick cotton wool from a roll; about 2 inches thick in total | Human, knee replacement trial |
| Padding | Cotton wool in practice; gamgee in the teaching lab | Veterinary, Bristol |
| Toe separators | Cotton wool strips between the toes, to stop the toes rubbing inside the bandage | Veterinary, Bristol |
| Anchoring tape | Tape “stirrups” (zinc oxide tape is more common on a real patient) | Veterinary, Bristol |
| Conforming layer | Conforming bandage (examples named: Knit-Fix, Easifix) | Veterinary, Bristol |
| Outer layer | Cohesive bandage (examples named: Vet Wrap, Co-Flex) | Veterinary, Bristol |
| Final wrap | Elastic bandage | Human, knee replacement trial |
For general information on the outer materials, see what a bandage is and what an elastic bandage is.
Original versus modified Robert Jones bandage
The trial compared a modified Robert Jones bandage with a conventional dressing after primary total knee arthroplasty. In that trial the modified bandage was gauze, Webril and cotton wool about 2 inches thick, finished with an elastic bandage. That is thinner than the three-wool, three-domette arrangement attributed to Charnley, which is why the trial authors call theirs “modified”.
What the evidence says after knee replacement
The trial randomised 30 patients per group. It reported no significant difference between the modified bandage and a conventional dressing in drain blood loss (418.83 mL versus 467 mL, p = 0.438), in pain at 24 hours on a visual analogue scale (3.43 versus 3.80) or in swelling. Bruising occurred in 3 patients in the bandage group and 2 in the conventional group, and one blister occurred in the bandage group. There was no peroneal palsy, infection or symptomatic venous thromboembolism to 14 days.
The authors also cite earlier work (Brodell and colleagues) for the pressure such a bandage exerts: roughly 40 to 50 mmHg at application, falling to about 2 to 10 mmHg within 48 hours. That figure was cited rather than measured in the trial.
Safe use and handling basics
The Bristol sheet is an instructional document for veterinary students and notes that many problems are avoided by thorough checks. Applying a bandage to a patient is a clinical task for trained staff; this page does not give application steps.
Common mistakes
- Confusing it with a splint. Rigid support is a different product class; see what a splint is.
- Mixing up the settings. The human trial dressing and the veterinary limb bandage use different layers, so figures from one do not describe the other. For other compression products, see compression dressings, short-stretch bandages and post-surgical compression garments.
FAQ
What is a Jones dressing?
Jones dressing is another name for the Robert Jones bandage: a bulky, layered compression bandage of padding, a conforming layer and an outer wrap.
Is a Robert Jones bandage used in both people and animals?
Yes. The 2013 trial studied it after human knee replacement, and the University of Bristol veterinary clinical skills sheet teaches it as a limb bandage for animals.
Does it reduce blood loss after knee replacement?
In the 2013 trial, drain blood loss did not differ significantly from a conventional dressing (418.83 mL versus 467 mL, p = 0.438).
Sources
- Pinsornsak P, Chumchuen S. Can A Modified Robert Jones Bandage After Knee Arthroplasty Reduce Blood Loss? A Prospective Randomized Controlled Trial. Clin Orthop Relat Res 2013;471(5):1677-1681. DOI 10.1007/s11999-013-2786-0. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3613516. Checked 2026-10-30.
- University of Bristol Veterinary School, Clinical Skills Laboratory, sheet CSL_B06 “Robert Jones Bandage” (PDF dated 2024-02-06). https://bristol.ac.uk/media-library/sites/vetscience/documents/clinical-skills/Robert%20Jones%20Bandage.pdf. Checked 2026-10-30.
