An adhesive bandage, also called a sticking plaster (and also known by the genericized trademark

Genericized trademark

A genericized trademark is a trademark or brand name that has become the colloquial or generic description for, or synonymous with, a general class of product or service, rather than as an indicator of source or affiliation as intended by the trademark's holder...

s Band-Aid

Band-Aid

Band-Aid is a brand name for Johnson & Johnson's line of adhesive bandages and related products. It has also become a genericized trademark for any adhesive bandage in Australia, Brazil, Canada, India and the United States....

 or Elastoplast

Elastoplast

Elastoplast is a trademark name of a brand of adhesive bandages and medical dressings made by Beiersdorf. Beiersdorf bought UK and Commonwealth rights from the parent company, Smith & Nephew in 1992 for £46.5 million. It has become a genericized trademark for "sticking plaster" in some...

) is a small dressing

Dressing (medical)

A dressing is an adjunct used by a person for application to a wound to promote healing and/or prevent further harm. A dressing is designed to be in direct contact with the wound, which makes it different from a bandage, which is primarily used to hold a dressing in place...

 used for injuries not serious enough to require a full-size bandage

Bandage

A bandage is a piece of material used either to support a medical device such as a dressing or splint, or on its own to provide support to the body; they can also be used to restrict a part of the body. During heavy bleeding or following a poisonous bite it is important to slow the flow of blood,...

. "Band-Aid" is the common American English

American English

American English is a set of dialects of the English language used mostly in the United States. Approximately two-thirds of the world's native speakers of English live in the United States....

 term, while "plaster" is the term in British English

British English

British English, or English , is the broad term used to distinguish the forms of the English language used in the United Kingdom from forms used elsewhere...

 usage.

Function

The adhesive bandage protects the cut, e.g. from friction, germs, damage, or dirt. Thus, the healing process of the body is less disturbed. Sometimes they have antiseptic

Antiseptic

Antiseptics are antimicrobial substances that are applied to living tissue/skin to reduce the possibility of infection, sepsis, or putrefaction...

 properties.

Material

An adhesive bandage is usually covered by woven fabric, plastic, or latex rubber which has an adhesive. Adhesive bandages usually have an absorbent pad, which is sometimes medicated with an antiseptic solution. Some bandages have a thin, porous-polymer coating over the pad to keep it from sticking to the wound. The bandage is applied such that the pad covers the wound, and the fabric or plastic sticks to the surrounding skin to hold the dressing in place and prevent dirt from entering the wound.

Variants

Special bandages are used by food handlers. These are waterproof, have strong adhesive so they are less likely to fall off, and are usually bright blue in color so that it is obvious to the wearer if it has fallen off into some food. They are also detectable by special machines that are used in food manufacturing plants to ensure that food is free from foreign objects before it is shipped to the public.

Transdermal patch

Transdermal patch

A transdermal patch is a medicated adhesive patch that is placed on the skin to deliver a specific dose of medication through the skin and into the bloodstream. Often, this promotes healing to an injured area of the body. An advantage of a transdermal drug delivery route over other types of...

es are adhesive bandages with the function to distribute medication through the skin, rather than protecting a wound.