• Ahoy and Welcome to the New SSS Forums!!

    As you can see, we have migrated our old forums to new software. All your old posts, threads, attachments, and messages should be here. If you see anything out of place or have any questions, please scroll to the very bottom of the page and click "Contact Us" and leave a note with as much detail as possible.

    You should be able to login with your old credentials. If you have any issues, try resetting your password before clicking the Contact Us link.

    Cheers
    - Bryan

Zipstitch

The biggest problem with closing up a deep laceration is being certain the wound is disinfected before closing - you don't want to close up a cut until you know i'ts clean and won't become infected.

For the closure I carry butterfly bandaids, 3M steri-strips, and a surgical stapler. These closures lay flat against the skin and can be covered with an additional bandage or wrap to protect the closure. I've only used the butterfly bandaids on myself, the steri-strips are great for deeper cuts and they go on about the same as a butterfly closure but seem to work better. The stapler I've not had to use, one was used on me at an emergency room (that's how I learned about them) when I nicked my leg with a 7" grinder disc (don't ask).

My concern with the zip-stitch is the device stands proud of the skin and lends itself to getting hung up on something or catching on clothing.

Do carry isopropyl alcohol (to clean forceps, hemostats - good for wound debridement), neosporin/polysporin and betadine (povidone iodine) for wound cleaning, and tincture of benzoin to help bandaids stick to the skin.

And then don't cut yourself!

- rob/beetle
 
Back
Top