Which sequence correctly lists the stages of healing from earliest to latest?

Which sequence correctly lists the stages of healing from earliest to latest?

• A. Inflammation, Proliferation, Maturation
• B. Proliferation, Inflammation, Maturation
• C. Maturation, Inflammation, Proliferation
• D. Inflammation, Maturation, Proliferation

Answer: (A)

Healing progresses in a defined order: inflammation first, then proliferation, and finally maturation (remodeling). Right after injury, the body activates hemostasis and recruits immune cells to clean debris and prevent infection—that's the inflammatory phase. Once the wound is cleared, new tissue forms during the proliferation phase, with fibroblasts laying down collagen, new blood vessels forming, granulation tissue filling the wound, and surface re-epithelialization occurring. The final stage, maturation, remodels the newly formed tissue; collagen is realigned and cross-linked, increasing tensile strength over time. That sequence—inflammation, then proliferation, then maturation—best fits the typical course of healing. Choosing a sequence that places proliferation before inflammation would skip the initial defensive and cleanup response, and placing maturation before proliferation would imply remodeling occurs before tissue formation.

Healing progresses in a defined order: inflammation first, then proliferation, and finally maturation (remodeling). Right after injury, the body activates hemostasis and recruits immune cells to clean debris and prevent infection—that's the inflammatory phase. Once the wound is cleared, new tissue forms during the proliferation phase, with fibroblasts laying down collagen, new blood vessels forming, granulation tissue filling the wound, and surface re-epithelialization occurring. The final stage, maturation, remodels the newly formed tissue; collagen is realigned and cross-linked, increasing tensile strength over time.

That sequence—inflammation, then proliferation, then maturation—best fits the typical course of healing. Choosing a sequence that places proliferation before inflammation would skip the initial defensive and cleanup response, and placing maturation before proliferation would imply remodeling occurs before tissue formation.