Which statement correctly identifies the three primary phases of wound healing and a key process in each phase?

• A. Inflammation/hemostasis—blood clotting and immune cell recruitment; Proliferation—granulation tissue formation and angiogenesis; Maturation/remodeling—collagen realignment and increased tensile strength.
• B. Inflammation—scar formation; Proliferation—epithelialization; Remodeling—blood clotting.
• C. Hemostasis—immune cell recruitment; Proliferation—scar remodeling; Maturation—epithelialization.
• D. Inflammation—swelling only; Proliferation—granulation; Remodeling—necrosis.

Answer: (A)

Wound healing unfolds in three phases, each with its own hallmark events. In the initial inflammatory/hemostatic phase, blood vessels constrict and a clot forms to stop bleeding, while immune cells (neutrophils and macrophages) are recruited to clear debris and prevent infection. The proliferative phase then takes over, with granulation tissue forming, new blood vessels growing (angiogenesis), fibroblasts depositing extracellular matrix (including collagen), and epithelial cells migrating to re-cover the wound. Finally, the maturation/remodeling phase reshapes and strengthens the tissue: collagen is realigned and cross-linked, the scar matures, and tensile strength increases.

This option is the best because it correctly matches each phase with its key process: inflammation/hemostasis involving clotting and immune recruitment; proliferation featuring granulation tissue formation and angiogenesis (plus epithelialization); and remodeling with collagen realignment and increased tensile strength. The other statements mix up where these processes occur—for instance, scar formation is primarily a remodeling event, not inflammation; epithelialization and angiogenesis belong to proliferation, not inflammation; and remodeling focuses on strength, not necrosis.