Wilderness first aid kits, lets here what ya got

[fireweed]

Don't forget good ole aspirin (chew if you feel a heart attack  coming on)

Ditto: ibuprofen, Benadryl (helps you sleep on the too)
powder or corn starch if you tend to get rubbed--feet, sides.
needle
tape
misc. bandages

[steeliedrew]

Bag Balm if you tend to get chaffed.  A bad case of chaffing can be debilitating and really take your mind off of a hunt with a quickness.

[Call em in]

There was a pretty interesting thread about epi pens versus Benadryl.

Basically, an epi pen only gives you about thirty minutes of relief, while if you took say 4 benedryls then took another every hour or so until help arrived you would theoretically lengthen your survival time.

This is based on the assumption you are likely 4-6 hours from help, which is mildly optimistic depending on the situation.

It's not that the epi pen wouldn't be useful, but that its primary purpose is to give you the 15-30 minutes until paramedics arrive which isn't possible in the backcountry.





Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Interesting. I haven't read that thread.  In a true anaphylactic emergency you will want the epi pen in conjunction with the Benadryl.

[nwwanderer]

A couple of long non stretch ankle wraps and some jock tape, great for all kinds of situations.

[Jarhead Chase]

Petroleum Jelly. Lord knows chafing can happen, and really make a long trek horrible, and you can use it for fire starting if you find yourself in a jam.

[Bean Counter]

There was a pretty interesting thread about epi pens versus Benadryl.

Basically, an epi pen only gives you about thirty minutes of relief, while if you took say 4 benedryls then took another every hour or so until help arrived you would theoretically lengthen your survival time.

This is based on the assumption you are likely 4-6 hours from help, which is mildly optimistic depending on the situation.

It's not that the epi pen wouldn't be useful, but that its primary purpose is to give you the 15-30 minutes until paramedics arrive which isn't possible in the backcountry.

Depending upon the patients sensitization to the allergen, the airway could swell up very quick. Epi could be necessary just to open the airway just long enough to get some oral diphenhydramine (Benadryl) down.

[SilkOnTheDrySide]

There was a pretty interesting thread about epi pens versus Benadryl.

Basically, an epi pen only gives you about thirty minutes of relief, while if you took say 4 benedryls then took another every hour or so until help arrived you would theoretically lengthen your survival time.

This is based on the assumption you are likely 4-6 hours from help, which is mildly optimistic depending on the situation.

It's not that the epi pen wouldn't be useful, but that its primary purpose is to give you the 15-30 minutes until paramedics arrive which isn't possible in the backcountry.

Depending upon the patients sensitization to the allergen, the airway could swell up very quick. Epi could be necessary just to open the airway just long enough to get some oral diphenhydramine (Benadryl) down.

Definitely true.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Bean Counter]

several references to Quik Clot  Only one reference to a tourniquet. 

I hope ya'll have a pocket knife handy and the mental wherewithal to fashion one out of your pant leg should you find yourself hemorrhaging your femoral artery. You can bleed out in 60-90 seconds should something go terribly wrong.




Warning: graphic content below.

yOUtUBE rANGERS KILLED INNOCENT UNARMED YOUNG BOY IN kARACHI

Granted: the best medicine for this young man would have been a gun to shoot back. After that, the only thing that could practically save his life is some sort of tourniquet. Your limb can survive 4-6 hours without blood flow. In any case better to lose it than your life.

[Bean Counter]

-One pack of quick clot
-Israeli bandage

Just to remind people a "pack" of Quick Clot manufactured in the last few years is no longer the Pixy Sticks, "open-n-pour" type trick-or-treat. It is now basically a bandage with the kaolin coagulant impregnanted into the gauze material itself. The old stuff was extremely caustic to all flesh and would become airborne when a helio was landed and fly up into peoples eyes  Prepare yourself now so you don't open it under stress, attempting to pour out something that is wadded up inside the package.

Proper application of the Quick Clot is to quickly blot away any pooled blood with a dressing other than the Quick Clot, discard that dressing, then apply the Quick Clot as close to the arterial source of bleed as possible. Note how the demonstrator packs the dressing under the thumb and applies pressure with one hand while the other hand grabs more dressing to shove in there. DO NOT just pull the dressing from the package, slap it onto the outside of the body, and apply pressure. PACK. THE. WOUND.

AGAIN: GRAPHIC CONTENT.

Quikclot Combat Gauze VIdeo

[Bean Counter]

Finally, a word to my fellow cheapskates out there. Don't throw away a perfectly good $30-40 Quik Clot dressing just because the expiry date has passed. The silly FDA requires that all medical stuffs have an expiration date. That doesn't mean everything is like a carton of milk. With medicine, its about loss of potency of the drug over time. I wouldn't tote around a 5 year old EpiPen that has baked in the 105 degree Arizona sun multiple summers. An expiration date on a bandage is really just a reminder about the sterility and condition of the packaging. If the package is still good, I would keep it 

[300rum]

Ibuprofen.  Duct tape I already have for most everything else. 

[Call em in]

There was a pretty interesting thread about epi pens versus Benadryl.

Basically, an epi pen only gives you about thirty minutes of relief, while if you took say 4 benedryls then took another every hour or so until help arrived you would theoretically lengthen your survival time.

This is based on the assumption you are likely 4-6 hours from help, which is mildly optimistic depending on the situation.

It's not that the epi pen wouldn't be useful, but that its primary purpose is to give you the 15-30 minutes until paramedics arrive which isn't possible in the backcountry.

Depending upon the patients sensitization to the allergen, the airway could swell up very quick. Epi could be necessary just to open the airway just long enough to get some oral diphenhydramine (Benadryl) down.

   Well said.  That was point I was trying to make. 

Also, good point on the tourniquet.  Sometimes I pack them sometimes I don't.  I have known people who have needed them while in the backcountry.  I have helped people many times with pretty decent lacerations but haven't had to use a tourniquet yet, knock on wood. 

Another thing I like is those little gel dressings they make for burns.  The name escapes me now, but we use them for blisters held in place with duct tape. 

[biggfish]

I bring duct tape, a needle, fishing line, and a butane hot knife.

[Bean Counter]

Also, good point on the tourniquet.  Sometimes I pack them sometimes I don't.  I have known people who have needed them while in the backcountry.  I have helped people many times with pretty decent lacerations but haven't had to use a tourniquet yet, knock on wood. 

I would avoid a tourniquet if you don't need it. Spurting, arterial  hemorrhage = need. Proper application of the tourniquet requires complete cessation of perfusion distal to the dressing. If a peripheral pulse is still palpable, that means blood is flowing into the limb, but might not be returning to the body. This "compartment syndrome" can be crushing to the limb.

Once a tourniquet has been applied and sat on there for a while it needs to be removed by a paramedic or higher. possibly a mandatory trip to the ER. bicarbonates must be administered to neutralize the lactic acid that builds up in the anaerobic process in the oxygen starved limb.

Another thing I like is those little gel dressings they make for burns.  The name escapes me now, but we use them for blisters held in place with duct tape.

Good ole dry sterile dressings works, too if that's all ya have. Stop the burning process with ROOM TEMPERTURE water then dry then wrap. DO NOT USE COLD WATER. Even though cold feels good! Cold water hastens vasoconstriction in the zone of stasis  around the burn and increases the amount of necrosis and subsequent scar tissue.

[Expedition Scout]

Don't forget medical gloves... the person you end up treating might not be part of your group. There are a few things out there that will really ruin your day! No need to scrimp on something so small and light weight but indispensable!