instead of a bandage

[cowgirl8]

Yesterday while cutting up some tomatoes for salsa and using a very sharp knife and cutting a tomato with very very thick skin, my knife slipped over the skin and cut a deep cut in my index finger. Gerrr, i hate when that happens, i had just started cutting, i had a pile of tomatoes and no band aides. The cut was very clean, was just starting to bleed, so i had to act quick. I've at times reclosed a clean cut and it healed quick without all the bleeding. I had scotch tape, but that doesnt hold up under water well, but i've worked around it. I looked in my junk drawer and found some masking tape, the blue kind, in there. We used it once to hold wood floor slats together while the glue dried, i found this tape is very strong even though its made to just pull off without leaving sticky stuff. So, i gave it a try. I bent my finger where the cut was closed then put the blue tape over it while putting pressure to keep the cut closed. It worked, i can even get it wet. I put the tape on it right after i cut it and its still on today. I believe this tape could sub for stitches in a pinch if nothing else was avalible.

[CrabGrassAcres]

I would never have thought of that. I am allergic to all adhesives though and cannot put any kind of tape on my skin.

 

Have you ever used the membrane from a fresh egg? Put it on fresh and wet, then let it dry. It contracts quite a bit and works better than steri-strips.

[sassenach]

Thank you for the tips, but I had to laugh, CGA, picturing myself trying to get the egg membrane out of the shell, after cracking it, with a sliced up finger bleeding all over the place..... sort of awkward if you are having to do it all your self!

[cowgirl8]

I'm sure the egg works good if you stop what your doing. i had a big basket of tomatoes to cut up and didnt have time. The tape is water proof without being all terrarium like. So you can continue to wash your hands while you work, unlike a bandage that gets all soggy and gross.

[Mother]

One issue with this tape might be sanitation. It's possible to introduce a germ into the cut that way. As you said though, it might work in an emergency.

 

Like CGA, I am allergic to adhesives on bandaids and latex but I have found that I can use super glue for a serious cut. I learned about that from an old time Veterinarian who told me that regular super glue was like surgical glue and sterile as well. I have used it with great results in both humans and animals.

 

Of curse, if the SHTF it's possible that you will have neither of these things and as CGA says, in that case an egg membrane is handy. So is a spider's web, though not sanitary either. Sugar works to stop bleeding if you allow it to build up and then let it set until the bleeding has totally stopped. Sugar also works as a antibacterial. So does honey. There are a lot of herbs that can be used as natural steptics and I'm sure a lot more natural things but.....I know of very few things that can be used to not only stop the bleeding but allow a person to continue to handle the tomatoes.

 

Good find Cowgirl8

[Crazy4Canning]

I know this wouldn't be for those of you allergic to adhesives, but Band-Aid makes a 5-pack box of water-proof bandages I had to use when I cut the palm of my hand. They are NOT cheap but they do the job.

 

I also grabbed a clean paper towel and a squishy ice pack. I rested with my hand above my heart for a while with the ice wrapped around my hand and let the ice stop the bleeding. There was very little blood. I sealed it with super glue. Now mind you, it did BURN. Oh my land, I was jumping around. It hurt like crazy. The bad news is that after having my hand in liquid, the super glue did begin to peel a bit after a time.

 

Also, do invest in some Celox or Blood-Stop for people. Make sure it is the 'new' kind though, and not the 'old' that heated up. It costs about $10 for a package about 3x5". It's supposed to be enough to stop a gsw or deep gash.

 

I saw this demo'd on a hog on u-tube. They dissected down to the femoral artery, sliced it, let it gush for a few seconds, then sprinkled the Celox in there and held it with a slight pressure bandage. In SECONDS the blood was stopped.

 

With the old style, you'd have to wait a while and irrigate the wound. It would actually burn the tissue but the person would live. Now, the new variety doesn't heat up as badly.

 

Celox, imho, should be a part of every first aid kit.

[Jori]

I taught first aid/cpr courses for years and we stopped encouraging the use of superglue. The links below gives a pretty in-depth explaination on super glue for wound closure. Personally, I would try to find an alternate to it such as the medical type of glue or a clotting agent. But if you are in the shtf situation, you have to improvise when you don't have everything you need. I just want to provide additional information on it. Walmart carries the clotting agents.

 

 

http://www.wisegeek.com/can-i-really-use-superglue-to-close-my-wound.htm

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/04/health/04real.html

[Mother]

Thanks Jori. I'm always glad when someone can give us some caution with home remedies. We need to be able to make informed decisions when we use something. I haven't gone to those links yet but I'll check them out.

 

It's strange to think about a time when we might not be able to obtain the items we normally use but at least we are becoming more informed 'just in case'.