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Old 03-15-2020, 02:56   #7
miclo18d
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Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Occupied Northlandia
Posts: 1,697
As I’m reading this at 4AM it may be incoherent,

I’ve been out of the game for over a decade now so I may not have all the current info on clotting agents, but as an 18D during the “war on terror” I was at the “tip of the spear (just the tip remind you!) of many of the clotting agents and techniques that are used today.

I’d like to point out that clotting agents were our LAST line of defense for MAJOR ARTERIAL bleeders NOT paper cuts, knife cuts, or facial lacs caused by giant mice!

Our number one go to for any bleed? Gauze

The importance of clotting agents is that it can quickly stop some serious arterial bleeding. There’s always a downside...it is fuck all for surgeons to clean up the after effect. One of the worst that seems to be in these kits sold on the civ side, is Quickclot (unless they’ve changed their agent). It is actually thermogenic and can “burn” the patient. We usually used chitosan bandages (the shrimp shell agent) most of the time and I had 1 full Hemcon bandage for use if the chitosan failed.

For all of the wounds that I treated in combat I did NOT once need a clotting agent.

To re emphasize, these agents have their place but in my opinion the will never replace an assortment of gauze rolls and squares and should only be used in life threatening cases.

For some one on blood thinners this may have seemed life threatening but it probably was not. It is good info to know that your patient is on such meds but you should start with tried and true....gauze. If your patient is going into shock from blood loss, say 500ml blood loss (say 1/2 qt), and you can’t stop the bleed and haven’t go replacement fluids...then this may be the time to consider, with reservation, the use of clotting agents.

YMMV MOO
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