Minor Wounds, Cleaning and Assisting Healing

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I'm sorry to disappoint Lakesailor and Lady Campanula but I forgot to include one piece of crucial information ... it is, or was, MALE urine that was considered a sovereign remedy for wounds

Apparently, female urine can cause rather then prevent infection (don't ask me why, I really don't feel inclined to carry out in depth research into the subject!) and in any case there are, one supposes, some challenges with delivery to the point of injury
 
Fur seals excepted..one of the 'dirtiest' bites for infection is the human bite.

I was always advised that if possible/practical (i.e. not too big and in the right place) the first thing to do with a wound is wash it with hot water (not too hot obviously) and soap as many otherwise dangerous bacteria are instantly killed off by heat and soap. Then proceed to the dressing stage before referring on to medics if necessary.

My parent always swore by Savlon as a gentle wound cleaner/protector. TCP is Phenolic and can easily damage good cells as well as bad ones, but it is a good standby as is iodine..which is what they sterilise your skin with before they cut you open in surgery..

Once the wound is closed and healing, a light dry non stick dressing and fresh air are best, with regular changes.

Tim
 
For a wound to heal you need 3 things - apposition of the edges, a good blood supply and an absence of infection.
If you can't get the edges together ('cos you've taken a divet out) then the wound needs to heal by secondary intention. This is a longer process.
Many agents retard healing.
If you're a long way from me and my suturing kit bind the wound, open the spirit and drink it!
If bone is exposed then cover it and pray.
If brain is exposed just pray
 
Wound closure

I find steristrips excellent - they are used in surgery a lot and are available from Boots as good wound closures. They let the wound breathe and stick even if the wound is a bit damp. More controversially I have often used superglue on cuts that keep opening up like on fingertips or knuckles where friction and flexing prevent natural closing. Again in surgery they use sterile versions of this but I take the view that a bug that can live in cyanoacrylate glue deserves to do well so I use the stuff from B&Q. I am sure there are some toxicity issues but the quantities used are very small.
 
I got a nasty rope burn once, took me hours over about 3 days with a mail brush and spray on TCP to get it cleaned to a standard accepted by the Austrian doctor on board. Didn't half sting. But after that healed fine.

Anyone use Celox? Could be useful.
 
If you're well offshore and clear of any debris or surface contamination, you're floating on a few trillion gallons of an emergency mild antiseptic for minor wound washing, anyway.
 
In the good old days when I was a charter yacht deckhand I was always getting cuts on my bare feet.
In Turkey I was told by a local surgeon to use a gel called Furacin
on a cut that had gone nasty. Worked immediately.
It allows the cut to breathe but prevents water ingress. That seemed important as the salt water just kept the cut open.
I have now been using the stuff for 20 years and wouldn't use anything else. It is also very inexpensive.
Cheers,
Chris
 
On the first aid course I did the guy rather rubbished antiseptic wipes on the basis that once a cut has occurred any local bacteria have already got into the wound and you are immediately relying on the bodies own immune system to fight and infection.

You should certainly try to close the wound, control bleeding and wrap with a sterile dressing to prevent further infection.

I work for a pharmaceutical company and found the book Bad Science (its won a number of awards) very interesting as it debunks nearly all homeopathic medicine and the pharmaceutical companies don't come out unscathed either.

Speed of healing depends on age and blood supply to the area and how big a wound.

Voltaire put it best "The purpose of medicine is to amuse the patient while nature takes its course" Not entirely true but probably fits a number of patients!!
 
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While doing the Festival at Morbihan, a close friend (dentist) regaled us one evening with his account of self surgury on a leg tumour. " Used a sharpened spoon, cos that is more or less what the 'real' surgeons use." And described how to make the first cut as a form of zig-zag so as to be able to sew it up neatly after. Couple of days later, the doctor in the next tent came over for a drink and had listened to all the previous chat. Bit horrified. Friend's leg is still fine though. We also enjoyed our meal just after the tale.
A
 
Compeed plasters

As a poster has said previously, wounds heal best if kept moist but clean. If you have a relatively minor cut or graze that does not really need an A&E I would recommend using a Compeed plaster. Although sold primarily for foot blisters they work well for cuts and grazes. Wounds heal without a scab. The plaster will stay on for up to a week even if you are in an out of the water.

Maybe worth keeping Betadine spray on board (note to self to get some more)

Even if you were to slice the pulp off your finger, it will regenerate well with this sort of bio-occlusive dressing.

I use it regularly in my practice as a Hand Surgeon

TudorDoc
 
tudorsailor said:
If you have a relatively minor cut or graze that does not really need an A&E I would recommend using a Compeed plaster. Although sold primarily for foot blisters they work well for cuts and grazes.
Maybe worth keeping Betadine spray on board (note to self to get some more)

Even if you were to slice the pulp off your finger, it will regenerate well with this sort of bio-occlusive dressing.

I use it regularly in my practice as a Hand Surgeon

TudorDoc
Click to expand...

Q1 - Where do you get Compeed plaster

Q2 - what do you use regularly as a hand surgeon Betadine -what deas it do? - or Compeed
 
Thanks everyone for the very interesting replies and references. I shall certainly review this subject some more.

Fair Winds,

BlowingOldBoots
 
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