Stop the bleeding

[Lupinus]

No ones saying there is something wrong wit a tourniquet. But it's a progression to stopping the bleeding. Apply pressure and bandages. If that doesn't work, then you use one as a last resort. Using one when there is no need is like stitching a scratch just to be on the safe side, only in this case could mean loosing a limb.

 

[Clipper]

IMHO, wrong on tourniquets...

Get the sucker on, get stuff under control, then loosen it. Just takes a minute or two. You don't always have a fast medevac.

Agree, 100%...

Properly applied, a tourniquet is a quick, handy way to get a bleeding situation under control.

Using one when there is no need is like stitching a scratch just to be on the safe side, only in this case could mean loosing a limb.

Only if you're stupid enough to apply one without knowing how to use it...It is a powerful tool, and like any other tool, using it improperly is dangerous. But those who think it's a 'nuclear option', or only for a choice between 'losing a limb or losing a life' are all wet. It's the kind of knee-jerk generalization that could get someone killed by making them too petrified or hesitant to use one when they need it.

 

[Ash]

A true tourniquet is designed to crush blood vessels and absolutely prevent the flow of blood. They should only be applied when a major artery has been severed, or if a limb has been removed, or severely mangled. They should not be used to staunch normal bleeding.

Many folks confuse the tourniquet with a constriction band, which is intended to stop most blood flow, but not crush vessels. It isn't semantics, there is a significant difference between the two. A tourniquet applied incorrectly can result in the loss of the limb or major tissue below it. It may not cause the loss, but it can. IN any case, it isn't BS in the least and is based on real-world experience. Times change, and modern "tourniquets" may be nothing more than tight constriction bands, but the warning isn't BS in the least.

Ash

 

[Buzztail]

My SO is an ER nurse. I was a first responder at my last job- First Aid/CPR, and on the Environmental/Safety committee. I try to stay pretty current on my knowledge. I fish offshore allot too- alone sometimes where I am my only assistance if the SHTF

 

[Lupinus]

Only if you're stupid enough to apply one without knowing how to use it...It is a powerful tool, and like any other tool, using it improperly is dangerous. But those who think it's a 'nuclear option', or only for a choice between 'losing a limb or losing a life' are all wet. It's the kind of knee-jerk generalization that could get someone killed by making them too petrified or hesitant to use one when they need it.

Ash has already pointed out what I would have said to this.

A tourniquet is a last option to prevent loss of life because other measures have failed.

 

[strambo]

If there is arterial bleeding or a severed limb....slapping a tourniquet on is a good plan. The guy in the farm example didn't have his belt-"tourniquet" applied properly, it didn't stop the bleeding. Improper use of a tool (or an improvised and ineffective one) isn't a critique of what the tool can do when used properly.

Latest battlefield data is that of all the preventable battlefield deaths, bleeding out is the most common. Hence the new doctrine of every soldier having a tourniquet and applying it immediately when there is a severed limb or an arterial bleed. It is saving lives. The second and third major preventable causes of death on the battlefield are tension pneumothorax (sucking chest wound) and obstructed airway. I put a 14 ga needle, Asherman chest seal and nasal pharengeal in my kit in addition to the Israeli (Emergency) dressing and tourniquet.

I probably mis-spelled some medical terms above...I'm just a grunt.

Quick-clot is not designed for arterial bleeds...and makes a big mess especially if you are out in the middle of nowhere. I like the chitosan dressings (same stuff as Quick-clot, but in a dressing, not powder). They are expensive and adhere to the wound and must be surgically removed I think...but Quick-clot has to be surgically removed as well.

Personally, I have all the stuff above except the Quick-Clot and chitosan dressings. Too expensive and too limited in use for civilian situations in my opinion.

 

[TrapperReady]

Nurses and related sub-MD professionals are worth their weight in gold during a crisis. They do 99% of the real life saving work. If you have to choose on a desert island, eat the doctor, keep the nurse.

Cosmoline - I've known quite a few people who were nurses, EMTs and paramedics who held that idea... until they went through medical school and residency.

The reality is that it all depends upon the individual and their specific skills.

 

[Daedalus7]

In all my time as an EMT (granted, not nearly as long as some of you have worked in ems), I've never used a tourniquet, but I've come damn close a few times. But I'm surprised at some of the comments about them - its really not a death sentence (no pun intended) for the limb it is applied to. The extremities can remain viable even if blood flow is cut off for up to 4-5 hours, and if it takes you that long to get to definitive care, you're screwed anyway.

That being said, there are some cool bandages out there that have a built in tourniquet/pressure-directly-over-the-wound function. The Israeli Bandage springs to mind.

 

[McCall911]

I agree that you really have to know what you're doing with a tourniquet, so it's not good basic first aid for the untrained. Pressure with a clean cloth is the best bet until you can get some help.

 

[highorder]

Most of us know how to treat a wound, but does your spouse/girlfriend? It could save your life, it did his.

My better half is a cardiac ICU nurse. For her, "just bleeding" is a step in the right direction