Stitching a wound.

Does anyone have any advice or recommended videos on wound stitching?

I've not done this myself, but have had plenty of stitch worthy wounds over the years. Most of these i have been lucky enough to get sorted at A & E, but i'm thinking about if i was further out and had to do it myself or for the family.

Things i'm interested in are...

1. Technique. What stitch is recommended?

2. Preparation of the wound. Antiseptic/numbing the wound/iodine etc.

3. What thread to use. Dissovable? fishing line?

4. After care in the field, just incase you had to manage on your own.

Thanks for any advice. I had a brief look on Youtube, but only found a few vids of sewing themselves up at home, and am not sure if it's the right way.

Cheers,

CX.


[edit on 30/7/09 by CX]

Interesting thread. I have had more than my share of stitches. So many that Frankenstein laughs at me.
One thing I started doing in my 20's was to start using super glue to close a wound. I know it sounds crazy, but it really works. Stings like heck for a moment or two, but then it's closed and ready to go.
As far as antiseptic, I am a big fan of Bactine. Easy to use, effective, and virtually pain free.

My bf once chopped his knee with an axe accidentally. Instead of seeking medical help, he scrubbed the wound with peroxide and taped it together with butterfly bandages. The wound was about 2 inches deep and 5 inches in length. It healed without infection within a couple of months. I was surprised because I thought the wound would heal from the outside in with that dressing, but it didn't. I guess he knew what he was doing. So, butterfly bandages would be my preference for those kinds of deep cuts.

Try these

www.helium.com...

firstaid.about.com...
Evaluate whether you need to stitch and links to others.

www.instructables.com...
Step by step guide.

It is an interesting thread.

I'm afraid I've never stitched myself, but I have had to do first aid on myself for cuts.

Super glue is handy as mentioned if you have it. Once in the woods I managed to cut my thumb to the bone. But, I had not super glue or even a band-aid. So I used what I had.

I used toliet paper as the padding directly over the wound and then wrapped it in duct tape as tight as I could.

It worked pretty well. By the time I got to where I could get stitches the bleeding had stopped.

Thanks for the replies, much appreciated.

I've tried the superglue method myself, has worked well on smaller wounds. If i'm right in saying, i think superglue was actualy invented for that reason, possibly in the Vietnam war from what i remember.

CX.

Go with a staple kit, super glue and steri strips. It doesn't have to be pretty. Close the wound with the steri strips and staple away.

www3.3m.com... spitalcommunity_3_0/command_AbcPageHandler/output_html

Just don't do this!!

Originally posted by jibeho
Go with a staple kit, super glue and steri strips. It doesn't have to be pretty. Close the wound with the steri strips and staple away.

www3.3m.com... spitalcommunity_3_0/command_AbcPageHandler/output_html

Just don't do this!!

Lol that was funny. I can imagine the nurse at A & E giving him a slap for stupidity.

CX.

I've used super glue many times and it is great. Don't be fooled by the "New Skin" brand. It doesn't hold nearly as well.

Be sure to go and get a Tetanus shot every 5-10 years if you are going to be dressing your own wounds. In the current state of affairs, we should all go and get a booster just in case SHTF!

Allowing your wound to bleed for a bit is a great way to clean it and lower the risk of infection. Otherwise Bactine is good and painless as mentioned before. Alcohol, anti-biotic ointment (neosporin), or good old soap and water. Iodine and Betadine are great dressings as well. These are the best things to clean with before bandaging.

Peroxide is NOT a great disinfectant. It is good at "debriding" or getting the dried blood and dead skin away, but it is not great at killing bacteria!

Stitching is not hard, the hard part is having a steady hand while you are in pain, and in aligning the edges of the wound so it heals faster and doesn't scar. In a SitX, it is probably more important to just get it closed. Using anything that won't harbor infection is acceptable. Nylon is probablly the best. If you must use normal 'threads' you need to saturate it in a disinfectant daily!

Do not cover burns or large scrapes! These are better left to scab and air dry. Remove (debride) all the injured or dead skin. Remove any yellow flaking daily. Remove any loose scabs. Keep it dry and open to the air as much as possible to avoid infection. Any puss, green or yellow slime is a bad indicator. Inspect it and wash it often. If you must stay mobile, cover it in dry compresses of gauze or cotton, but remove them as soon as you reach a camp, or change them very often!

reply to post by CX


depending on the severity you could cauterize it with hot metal

reply to post by CX


Autowrench:
Stitches were a way of life for me for many years, working on engines, but my Viet Nam buddies clued me in on Super Glue, it works wonderful for gluing together a cut or wound. For those nasty wounds, stitches are necessary. First and foremost get it clean with soap and water and pat dry. Then use an antiseptic to prevent infection. I keep a few of those curved needles in my first aid kit, but an ordinary stainless sewing needle will do the job. Use cotton thread, and use a loop stitch, tying off the ends when finished. Bandage to keep out dirt. You may have to have someone help you to hold the two parts together. I have done this to my own hands many times with very good results, no infections at all. I use Neosporian and Iodine a lot. If the wound is bad, and bleeding a lot, by all means go to the hospital, don't bleed to death. You should see their faces when you tell them no numbing agent please, just sew it up. By the way, I do have scars on my hands, but they are small, and not really noticeable unless you look right at the hands. To me they are battle scars, and proff of what I did for most of my life. I still miss it.

reply to post by lombozo


I've always been fascinated by the superglue application and have never had the need to try. (not sure whether to be sad or happy by that! )

I was curious tho - is the superglue itself not poisonous or dangerous to have on the open wound? I would have guessed the ingredients to its composition arent what one would normally apply to an open wound..?

I'd go with a good supply of super glue. Stitching isn't a big deal as long as the material won't come apart or break inside the stitch.

reply to post by getreadyalready


Be careful with burn wounds. Burn wounds are best kept moist and covered and not dry. Burns are highly susceptible to infection and should be cared for carefully. Debridement will be facilitated by the moist dressing. Any other form if debridement is painful and tricky to do to yourself.

Originally posted by warrenb
reply to post by CX

 

depending on the severity you could cauterize it with hot metal

You could always go with the John Rambo method of cauterizing. A little gun powder will do wonders for a wound.

Originally posted by jibeho
reply to post by getreadyalready

 

Be careful with burn wounds. Burn wounds are best kept moist and covered and not dry. Burns are highly susceptible to infection and should be cared for carefully. Debridement will be facilitated by the moist dressing. Any other form if debridement is painful and tricky to do to yourself.

Painful yes, but moist is a very risky proposition.

I spent 10 days in a burn unit with "full-thickness" burns over 25% of my body. Clean and dry was the way to go! I developed an infection and some gangrene in a couple of tough to keep dry spots.

I went through the fun debridement daily! I also had the "skin-graft" surgery, and had about 10,000 staples that had to be removed as well!

In the controlled environment of a sterile ward a moist dressing can keep the pain down, but in a SitX it would be far too risky. Better to endure the pain and keep the risk of infection low. Covering the wound is ok when moving around, but open air is the best as much as possible.

well if you have no glue, sugar works very well on gun shot wounds or punctures in the flesh any just fill the hole up with suger, it will stop the bleeding and it will also draw any infection out. clean and replace daily.

reply to post by getreadyalready

Your experience clearly speaks volumes. I cannot imagine the pain that you must have gone through. Have couple of shots of Bourbon on me.

Originally posted by warrenb
reply to post by CX

 

depending on the severity you could cauterize it with hot metal

You go ahead and stick a red hot poker to an open wound. I rather sew it shut with barb wire.

Originally posted by Sauron
well if you have no glue, sugar works very well on gun shot wounds or punctures in the flesh any just fill the hole up with suger, it will stop the bleeding and it will also draw any infection out. clean and replace daily.

Turpentine and Sugar! My mother always taught us this, and my grandfather saved a foot this way after he axed it!

We used to think my mother was crazy, but I saw this very thing on an episode of House! An old survival trick. Turpentine and sugar clot the blood and sterilize the wound and may get you to some help!

Spider webs work well also. A handful of spider webs, especially with sugar, will help close a wound and stop the bleeding.