Plastered Up.

[Dennis]

I cut my fingers from time to time, as I suppose you do too. But stemming the blood and getting a plaster out of its packaging singlehanded and then applying it successfully can be verging on the impossible.

Sometimes I resort to Sellotape, Just to get back to work.

Boots, Elastoplast et al. have a lot to answer for. Keeping it on is defeated by the poor adhesion to accommodate those who might be sensitive to stronger adhesives. So you can be struggling with this problem several times a day.

What do you do? Dennis.

[ps_bond]

Localised pressure first & foremost until the bleeding has stopped.
If it's serious enough for me to need a plaster, then I usually use Micropore/Sanipore and a Melolin-type dressing as standard; for small stuff I cut down the 5x5 dressings.
Slightly larger cuts I'll use Steristrips on before dressing.

I know some people advocate superglue for nicks in the workshop - there's 2 really good reasons not to: Firstly, medical superglue is not the same as the stuff in B&Q, the latter off-gases chemicals that aren't going to help and secondly (especially in a workshop environment) I've seen a lot of incidences of people using CA for suturing that have trapped crud in the wound, resulting in it becoming infected. The proper stuff has some specific applications where it's extremely useful, but it's not a panacea.

[SteveLAO]

Has anyone tried "spray-on plasters"? It's an aerosol can which you spray on the wound and apparently it instantly seals the would and hardens like a plaster? Elastoplast do it, which to me seems like shooting yourself in the foot....but then at least they'd have a plaster for that hahahaha

[MeadMoon]

The spray-on stuff stings like hell if the skin is broken and you can only use it on superficial wounds, like grazes and blisters.

[ps_bond]

Newskin as an aerosol? Same propensity for trapping crud in wounds as CA. But... I use a similar one on the horses for small stuff, providing the wound has been cleaned (Hibiscrub usually) first. It has prevented a lot of small cuts & scrapes getting worse.

Funnily enough, my training included dealing with gunshot wounds - not part of the usual FAW syllabus

[LydiaNiz]

The aerosol stuff stings so badly it is unreal. I have opted for superglue when plasterless.

My poor accident-prone dad literally shot himself in the foot (aged 18 leaning on a rifle and slipped) and cut off his nose (to spite his face?) In a horrible accident when replacing a greenhouse roof pane.

[ShinyLauren]

Blimey Lydia! Suspect he needed a bit more than a plaster for those!

When we were kids, my mum's first aid kit consisted of only plasters and germoline. She was terribly squeamish, so if a wound needed more than those two things, we were immediately dispatched to my gran or the hospital!

[EmmaC]

I live on a smallholding with livestock, and have on occasion used the veterinary wound powder I keep for them on myself. It is very good if you get something deep that won't stop bleeding as you can pack it in then put some tape over the top, however probably not recommended for people. I'm still alive with all fingers attached though! Vet wrap is also very good, interestingly I see Cookies sell a thinner version as jewellers finger tape!

[medusa]

I always have micropore in the workshop for 'just in case' scenarios and also because it's handy for other stuff.

Has anyone tried "spray-on plasters"? It's an aerosol can which you spray on the wound and apparently it instantly seals the would and hardens like a plaster? Elastoplast do it, which to me seems like shooting yourself in the foot....but then at least they'd have a plaster for that hahahaha

My mum, who is on serious blood thinners and you just have to brush her skin and she bleeds like a stuck pig, uses the spray on skin stuff. She finds it really useful, but for anything serious/deep it wouldn't work.

I thought that you shouldn't use superglue, Lydia, because it has something nasty in it. The stuff you buy for gluing isn't the same as the hospital stuff apparently. Though I suppose if you've severed a femoral artery by not paying attention to your cutting wheel, it's better than exsanguination.

[Lucie]

Another vote here for micropore tape & also steri strips