How to deal with penatrating trauma (gsw and stab wounds)
For today's talk, I want to talk about how to deal with penetrating trauma. I will start with the fact that the most important fact is to stop the bleeding. Hemostatic agents and tourniquets are acceptable by many standards. A word of caution with hemostatic agents such as Quick-clot, they have a history of cauterizing the area. This can cause extensive damage that was unintentional. Of the many tourniquets that are available on the market, I do have a bias towards CAT-T. I have personally used of them, they just plain work. One thing to take into consideration is that on some bleeds that are arterial1 based they may require a second tourniquet. When the abdominal or inguinal2 region of the body has a penetrating trauma Abdominal Aortic and Junctional Tourniquet is a newer piece of equipment. You will need to know the indication and location of the injury for this equipment to work properly. The use of hemostatic is the abdominal cavity is something that needs to be considered carefully. Knowing if the hemostatic that you carry will cause cauterization. My preference is a hemostatic gauze, not a powder based. when dealing with penetrating abdominal injuries you will need to use an occlusive dressing3. With a multitude of other reasons for using the occlusive dressing. You're preventing air from entering the abdominal cavity and interfering with the diaphragm. please note that you can use hemostatic gauze under an occlusive dressing. (If you're unsure of how to use the hemostatic dressing YouTube is a valid resource) when it comes to a penetrating thoracic chest trauma, the biggest concern in the pre-hospital care is keeping the victim profusing4. chest seals are the most appropriate for this situation. when it comes to the patient's ability to breath. signs and symptoms for tension pneumothorax5. you can leave a corner of the chest seal open to allow air to escape. I prefer keeping the wound completely sealed and inserting a needle decompression kit. My preference is the SPEAR, it can be found at North America Rescue under the respirations tab. It can be used as a chest tube, if in a dire situation. The manufacturer will not make this statement; however, I have had the pleasure of meeting the team who invented it. The main concern with chest trauma is keeping the victim breathing until EMS can arrive.
If you have any question feel free to comment.
Please take note, I am not a doctor nor a grammar expert. This is just a thread that I want to post. I am not a medical professional nor am I liable for your actions.
" EMS does not save lives. God does. It's our job to entertain our patients until he makes up his mind." Dr. Red Duke.
1(Deep red blood that is high pressure)
2(Area around both of the hips)
3(A type of dressing that will not allow air into the wound)
4(The process of oxygen and carbon dioxide passing from the lung into the bloodstream)
5(Buildup of air in the chest cavity collapsing the lung)
