The difference between a laceration and an incision is:

• A. A laceration is a puncture
• B. An incision is jagged-edged
• C. A laceration causes jagged edges; an incision is smooth
• D. A laceration is a clean cut with smooth edges

Answer: (C)

A laceration comes from tearing tissue, usually due to blunt trauma, and it leaves irregular, jagged edges. An incision is a deliberate cut made with a sharp instrument, resulting in a clean, smooth edge along a relatively straight line. So the key distinction is how the wound edges look: jagged and uneven with lacerations, versus smooth and clean with incisions. The other points misstate the mechanisms or the edge quality—puncture wounds are from pointed objects and aren’t what lacerations are, and a laceration isn’t a clean cut, nor is an incision typically jagged-edged.