A wound is an injury in which the integrity of the skin and deep tissues, as well as mucous membranes, is violated. The wound is accompanied by the release of blood and pain. The intensity of bleeding depends on what types of wounds were inflicted and what vessels were damaged. The most severe bleeding is observed if large arterial trunks were affected during the injury. Everything about wounds, types and their treatment with special antiseptics will be told here.
What are wounds?
Depending on what caused the injury, wounds are divided into the following types:
- cut (appear after cuts with a knife and other sharp objects);
- stab;
- firearms (from pistols, machine guns, rifles and other weapons);
- chopped;
- crushed (after a person's contact with something very heavy and massive);
- bruised;
- bitten (bites of dogs, snakes and other animals);
- torn, etc.
Incised wounds
This kind of wound is obtained inas a result of exposure to a cutting tool - a knife, glass and other sharp objects. Such lesions are characterized by smooth edges, a small area of damage and heavy bleeding.
Stab wounds
These wounds are the result of a blow with a piercing object (awl, bayonet, needle, etc.). The zone of damage from above is quite small, but at the same time the wound can be very deep and, of course, very dangerous for human he alth and even life. The danger is that internal organs can be affected, and an infection can be introduced into them. Penetrating wounds of the chest with damage to the organs located in it disrupt cardiac activity, which causes bleeding in the nose and mouth, hemoptysis. Injuries to the abdomen can rupture the stomach, liver, kidneys, or intestines.
Gunshot wounds
If the damage occurred as a result of a shrapnel or bullet wound, then gunshot wounds are obtained. The types of wounds and first aid in this case depend on how the bullet or fragment hit. Injury can be:
- through;
- blind;
- tangent.
Slashed wounds
Such damage is inflicted by sharp heavy objects such as an ax, a saber, and the like. As a rule, such wounds are shallow, but often have a large area, are characterized by crushing of soft tissues and significant bruising. May be infected.
Bite wounds
One of the most common types of wounds are bites, most often caused by dogs, much less often by other animals. Determining a bite is quite simple, you just need to look at the wound, it has the wrong odds, if you look closely, you can see the saliva of the animal. In most cases, such wounds do not carry a huge danger to humans. However, it should be understood that the animal may have rabies, in which case it will be necessary to carry out long-term treatment.
Signs, types of wounds and bleeding
Specialists distinguish several types of bleeding, they directly depend on which blood vessels were damaged. The most dangerous for a person is arterial bleeding. Arteries carry a large amount of blood at a high speed, so if measures are not taken in time, a person cannot be saved. Determining such bleeding is quite simple, the blood is scarlet in color, and from the wound it does not just ooze or flow out, but beats with a pulsating stream.
Venous bleeding is less dangerous. It is also quite difficult to stop the blood, but it no longer pulsates, but simply flows. When small vessels are damaged, capillary bleeding occurs. In this case, the wound bleeds over the entire surface. Parenchymal bleeding appears only if a person has seriously damaged internal organs. Along with arterial bleeding, it is considered the most dangerous and carries a huge threat to life.
According to medical terminology, there are two types of bleeding: external and internal. In the first case, everything is quite simple, the person sees that blood is being released from the wound, and he can immediately takeappropriate measures. With internal bleeding, everything is much more complicated. The outpouring of blood occurs in the organs, tissues or cavity. The easiest way to determine internal bleeding in the tissue, then a certain swelling forms on the human body.
First aid for injuries
When a person is injured, a pain shock can occur, in which the activity of vital organs is disrupted. To prevent this from happening, the wounded person should be injected with a special syringe-tube of an analgesic agent, allowed to drink coffee or hot tea.
First aid depends on the type of wound. Wounds must be exposed before being treated. To do this, a person should undress. If the garment cannot be removed, it must be cut. Clothes are removed in the following order: first from the he althy side, and then from the one where there is a wound. To avoid hypothermia in winter, or if help is needed very urgently, you can simply cut the clothing in the wound area. If the clothing is stuck to the wound, then it must be carefully cut with scissors, it must not be torn off.
How to stop bleeding?
Immediately it should be noted that there are a large number of different ways to stop the bleeding, but much depends on the type of bleeding. Here are the most common ways to stop bleeding:
- The first step is to give an elevated position to the part of the body on which there is a wound. In this case, less blood will flow here, which will lead to slower bleeding.
- If the wound is on the limbs,bend it at the joint as much as possible.
- The tourniquet should only be applied above the wound. It is extremely important to remember this point, because the wrong imposition will not only not help a person, but can also cause more serious harm to he alth.
- You can stop the bleeding for a while by pressing the bleeding vessel with your fingers against the bone above the wound.
- Close the wound with a sterile swab.
The method of stopping bleeding by pressing the vessel to the bone is used only for a short time, during which a pressure bandage or tourniquet will be prepared.
There are different types of wounds, and first aid often depends on where the wound is located:
- if the wound is at the bottom of the face, then the bleeding can be stopped by pressing the maxillary artery to the edge of the lower jaw;
- blood that flows from wounds on the head and neck is stopped by pressing on the carotid artery so that it is pressed against the cervical vertebrae;
- Temporal bleeding is quite difficult to stop if you don't know one feature - to press on the artery in front of the ear, thanks to this, the blood will stop flowing almost immediately;
- if the wound is located on the forearm, bleeding can be stopped by pressing on the brachial artery located in the middle of the shoulder;
- bleeding from a wound on the leg is recommended to be stopped by pressing the femoral artery against the pelvic bones;
- if the wound was on the area of the foot, then the bleeding is stopped by pressing the artery located on the back of the foot.
Overlayheadbands
If blood is secreted from veins or small arteries, then in this case it is necessary to apply a pressure bandage to the wound. This is done as follows: on the wound area you need to put a sterile bandage or gauze in several layers. You can also use an individual dressing bag. Place a layer of cotton wool on top of the gauze and secure with a circular bandage. Make sure that the bandage is tightly pressed to the wound and squeezes the blood vessels. Such a bandage can stop bleeding from veins and small capillaries.
Stop bleeding with a tourniquet
When the bleeding is very strong, it is usually stopped with a special tourniquet. If it is not at hand, then you can use any materials at hand, such as a scarf, belt, etc.
The tourniquet must be applied above the wound. This is done as follows: wrap the leg or arm where the tourniquet will be applied with a lining (this is done so as not to damage the skin). Then raise the wounded limb and wrap it with a tourniquet several times, fix the end. If the tourniquet is applied correctly, the bleeding stops, and the pulse below the wound is not palpable. The tourniquet should be tightened until the bleeding stops.
A tight tourniquet cannot be kept on a limb for more than 2 hours. The wounded limb must be elevated all this time. In order for the tourniquet to be removed on time, a note is usually placed under it, indicating the exact time when the tourniquet was applied.
People who are rarely in such emergency situations very often commitwrong actions that lead to bad consequences. Most common mistakes:
- use the tourniquet only as a last resort, when all other available methods have failed;
- very often people put a tourniquet directly on the wound, sometimes below it, but this is fundamentally wrong, it should only be above the wound and nowhere else;
- do not put anything under the tourniquet, its presence on bare skin can lead to infringement of the skin and even to their necrosis;
- also quite often people who provide first aid make a mistake with the stretching of the tourniquet, if it is tightened too loosely, then the blood will start to flow even faster, if it is too tight, then you can compress the nerves.
Damage Handling
Wound treatment depends on the species. They begin to process after the release of blood is stopped. For this procedure, you can use solutions of brilliant green, potassium permanganate, iodine, alcohol, vodka. Moisten a gauze pad with liquid and lubricate the edges of the wound. It is not necessary to wet the injury, as this increases pain and slows down the healing of damaged tissues. It is also forbidden to wash the wound with water, lubricate it with ointment or apply cotton wool to it. Such actions can lead to infection of the surface. Foreign bodies should not be removed from the damaged area if they are located there. Only a doctor should do this.
If a prolapse of internal organs occurred during a penetrating wound of the abdomen, then in no case should they be set back. The wound just needs to be covered with sterilegauze, place a soft ring of cotton wool and gauze around the fallen organs, and then apply a bandage, it should not be too tight. Such an injured person is not allowed to eat or drink.
If it is not possible to apply a sterile bandage due to the lack of one, then you can simply use a clean cloth, having previously held it several times over the fire. Then, soak the place that will touch the wound with iodine.
Varieties of dressings:
- In case of a head wound, dressings are applied from napkins, scarves and plasters. What bandage to apply depends on the type of wound and on the nature. For example, if the scalp is damaged, then in this case the bandage has the shape of a cap. The bandage should be attached behind the lower jaw with a bandage.
- If the wound is located on the back of the head, on the larynx or on the neck, then a cruciform bandage should be applied.
- A bridle bandage is applied when there is damage to the facial area.
- When the nose, chin or forehead is injured, first cover the affected area with a sterile bandage or napkin, and then apply a sling bandage.
- When wounded in the lower abdomen, the bandage should have a spike shape, in the upper part of the wound is covered with a sterile napkin and bandaged in a circle from the bottom up.
Basic First Aid Rules
The one who was the first to be near the wounded person and tries to help him must observe the following rules:
- Before you start renderingfirst aid, it should be understood that your hands must be clean, otherwise you can only harm the injured person, so they need to be washed thoroughly. If this is not possible, you can wipe your hands with iodine tincture. But even with clean hands, you cannot touch the wound itself directly.
- It is not allowed to pour alcohol, iodine on the wound, wash it with water, treat it with ointments or pour powder on it, and also cover it with cotton. Otherwise, damaged tissues will not heal well, suppuration may occur.
- Foreign bodies or blood clots protruding from the wound should not be removed, as this is fraught with severe bleeding.
- If a wound is formed on a leg or arm, make sure that the person cannot move it, in this case, the bleeding will stop faster and the limb will not be further damaged.
- It is strictly forbidden to use electrical tape to rewind the wound.
How to transport casu alties?
The wounded person should be taken to a medical facility as soon as possible, and this must be done in such a way as not to harm the victim even more. Transportation can be carried out in the following ways: transportation by any means of transport, removal on a stretcher or on hands, maintenance.
For any transportation, make sure that the head is higher than the legs. If transportation is carried out using a stretcher, it is necessary to lift and lay the victim on command. It should be laidso that he is comfortable. When carrying, you need to go “out of step”.
