Haemostatic Dressings First Aid Kit

Haemostatic Dressings First Aid Kit



Research shows that 40% of civilian deaths from traumatic injury occur due to exsanguination, or excessive blood loss, with between a third and half of these victims dying before they reach hospital.1Catastrophic bleeding is the second highest cause of death outside of the armed forces and is the leading cause of death in military situations.To get more news about hemostatic dressing, you can visit rusuntacmed.com official website.

Traumatic injuries include stabbings and gunshot wounds, and injuries sustained in explosions, as well as vehicular accidents and major incidents with machinery or equipment in the workplace. The level of pre-hospital fatalities emphasises the need for expert first aid training to deal with such traumas, enabling first responders to prevent blood loss promptly and reduce the risk of death.
Catastrophic blood loss from a traumatic injury can be stemmed in three ways: by applying pressure to the wound, by forming a tourniquet to stop blood flow to the wound, and by the use of a haemostatic dressing.

What is a haemostatic dressing?

Haemostatic dressings are not suitable for all heavy bleeding injuries, but when used appropriately and applied correctly, they can save lives. They use chemical processes to stop bleeding rapidly in traumatic injuries and usually work within two to three minutes, with some specialist rapid-action products acting even faster.

The dressings work by either creating a physical barrier to stem blood flow, or by encouraging clotting at the wound site, or often a combination of both.

Types of haemostatic dressing

Haemostatic dressings usually consist of bandages or gauze that are impregnated with chemicals to help seal the wound. Haemostatics may also come as a pad, which is pressed on to the wound site, or a ‘tea bag’ style sachet of the chemical which can be pressed deep into an open wound.

Haemostatic powders are also available, including some with special applicators that can penetrate deep into a stab wound or gunshot wound. However, these are much more difficult to use in the field and so are not recommended for standard first aid kits.

There are three types of haemostatic dressing, each of which works in a different way:

Mucoadhesive agents – these work by sticking to the damaged tissues, creating a physical barrier to blood flow.
Factor concentrators – these work by absorbing water from the wound, which causes the blood to become thicker, increasing the concentration of natural clotting agents.
Procoagulents– these are mineral based compounds that stimulate and accelerate the natural clotting processes.
Are haemostatic dressings required in a first aid kit?

Haemostatic dressings are an expensive addition to your first aid kit, and so should only be specified if there is a genuine need. However, if such a need does exist, they should never be ruled out on the basis of cost, as they could mean the difference between life and death.

The HSE June 2016 First Aid eBulletin included a recommendation for the provision of haemostatic dressings in workplace first aid kits if a First Aid Needs Assessment indicated that there was a risk of traumatic injury resulting in catastrophic bleeding. This covers industries such as heavy manufacturing, agriculture, forestry and construction, along with any other workplace where open or penetrating wounds may occur. The HSE advice drew on the conclusions of the 2015 European Resuscitation Council review of first aid protocols.