- Joined
- Aug 8, 2005
- Messages
- 11,075
First, could somebody take McGuiverstein out and shoot him for a bit? Thanks.
I'm weighing in here purely as a paramedic. First and foremost, do NOT administer ANY first aid that you do not fully understand and know the potential side effects and contraindications. Let's make that sentence crystal clear. Side effects. Any physiological effect upon a body other than the specific purpose effect of the treatment. This includes potential allergic reactions (anaphylaxis), very common. Another very common side effect is antiplatelet caused by aspirin which can cause hemorrhage (bleeding).
The two reasons for this are the countless injuries people suffer from the treatment of an injury, IE, compounding the tragedy. Or as one doctor succinctly put it, 'Try to leave the patient in better condition than when you started messing about'. The other reason is your treatment may cloud, obscure, or conceal symptoms that will be used to diagnose and determine proper treatment. As example, the age old battlefield treatment of knocking the patient on his/her arse with a half grain of morphine (pain killer) and the doctors hands are tied and they cannot perform many therapeutic procedures until the stuff wears off as it effects the vitals and conceals or disrupts many normal physiological responses.
Tourniquets. Never use unless properly trained. NEVER. If a tourniquet is applied it must be constantly monitored by a properly trained medic or person of greater training. There are two types of tourniquet. Venous and arterial. If you don't know all the properties and effects of both, forget it. Indirect cooling, ice or cold pack, is just as effective in slowing the spread of a toxin. Never apply ice to bare skin. Wrap in cloth first.
Epinephrine, synthetic adrenaline, aka epi pen. Used to counteract shock, especially anaphylaxis shock. The dose you get from an epi pen is about the same as you get from the local anesthetic the dentist uses. If you have ever felt your heartbeat start to race after the dentist numbs you up, it's not just because of the anticipation of a long slow root canal. Epi is the zoom drug. Go watch that scene in Pulp Fiction. Epinephrine is also a vasoconstrictant. It slows the venous blood flow which keeps the anesthetic around the nerves the dentist is mangling and maiming. Again, one doc did an aside to me about epi pens, 'Get within yelling distance of the emergency room door and give yourself a shot to see how you react'. IE, it's pretty harmless, and if you have known allergies and are around things that bite a lot, it doesn't hurt to have it on hand. It is suggested that if you are having a bite reaction or suspect that is coming down, call for medical assistance and advise the dispatcher you are administering or have administered an epi pen. For those who want to try epi as a recreational drug high, consider finding some other way of sending your heart rate and blood pressure through the roof.
Hydrogen peroxide. It's thirsty. Big time hungry thirsty. It has a molecular problem. It's missing an atom, or has one too many, depending how you look at it. When you applied it to a wound and it foams, it's blowing up damaged cells in search of that atom. This is good. Really. Damaged cells are the ones that get infected first and spread the infection the most. That also helps to get rid of some of the venom in the wound. Repeatedly flood the wound with the stuff. There are no side effects as used hydrogen peroxide becomes dihydrogen oxide, aka water.
Dimethylxanthine, aka chocolate. Psychoactive central nervous system stimulant. Naww. You don't need that. BUT! BUT BUT BUT BUT!!!! If there is any reason to suspect, ANY REASON, that anaphylaxis or nervous system disorders may come down, please don't eat or drink anything. In paramedic parlance we call that loading the cannon. You may become nauseated. Drowning on your own vomit is a very sucky way to go out and the big spit really makes CPR harder and very messy.
Aspirin, Excedrin and similar. (Excedrin is a combination of aspirin, paracetamol (acetaminophen) and caffeine). Aspirin is a blood thinner. Not all that good an idea. Paracetamol isn't that good an idea either as the threshold between therapeutic dose and lethal can be a bit fuzzy. Caffeine? See dimethylxanthine.
Alcohol wipes. Moderately effective in reducing/preventing infection if scrubbed pretty hard. Povidone iodine Betadyne<tm> is much more effective.
Band aids. Natch. Let's keep the dirt out.
If you have taken any drug keep track of it. If you need to see a physician, tell him what you have ingested. This is especially important with prescribed medications. Also, know the side effects and contraindications of all drugs you ingest, be it recreational, OTC or prescribed.
Ingesting alcoholic beverages. You've already got a problem. Suppressing the central nervous system and general physiological responses isn't likely to help.
I'm weighing in here purely as a paramedic. First and foremost, do NOT administer ANY first aid that you do not fully understand and know the potential side effects and contraindications. Let's make that sentence crystal clear. Side effects. Any physiological effect upon a body other than the specific purpose effect of the treatment. This includes potential allergic reactions (anaphylaxis), very common. Another very common side effect is antiplatelet caused by aspirin which can cause hemorrhage (bleeding).
The two reasons for this are the countless injuries people suffer from the treatment of an injury, IE, compounding the tragedy. Or as one doctor succinctly put it, 'Try to leave the patient in better condition than when you started messing about'. The other reason is your treatment may cloud, obscure, or conceal symptoms that will be used to diagnose and determine proper treatment. As example, the age old battlefield treatment of knocking the patient on his/her arse with a half grain of morphine (pain killer) and the doctors hands are tied and they cannot perform many therapeutic procedures until the stuff wears off as it effects the vitals and conceals or disrupts many normal physiological responses.
Tourniquets. Never use unless properly trained. NEVER. If a tourniquet is applied it must be constantly monitored by a properly trained medic or person of greater training. There are two types of tourniquet. Venous and arterial. If you don't know all the properties and effects of both, forget it. Indirect cooling, ice or cold pack, is just as effective in slowing the spread of a toxin. Never apply ice to bare skin. Wrap in cloth first.
Epinephrine, synthetic adrenaline, aka epi pen. Used to counteract shock, especially anaphylaxis shock. The dose you get from an epi pen is about the same as you get from the local anesthetic the dentist uses. If you have ever felt your heartbeat start to race after the dentist numbs you up, it's not just because of the anticipation of a long slow root canal. Epi is the zoom drug. Go watch that scene in Pulp Fiction. Epinephrine is also a vasoconstrictant. It slows the venous blood flow which keeps the anesthetic around the nerves the dentist is mangling and maiming. Again, one doc did an aside to me about epi pens, 'Get within yelling distance of the emergency room door and give yourself a shot to see how you react'. IE, it's pretty harmless, and if you have known allergies and are around things that bite a lot, it doesn't hurt to have it on hand. It is suggested that if you are having a bite reaction or suspect that is coming down, call for medical assistance and advise the dispatcher you are administering or have administered an epi pen. For those who want to try epi as a recreational drug high, consider finding some other way of sending your heart rate and blood pressure through the roof.
Hydrogen peroxide. It's thirsty. Big time hungry thirsty. It has a molecular problem. It's missing an atom, or has one too many, depending how you look at it. When you applied it to a wound and it foams, it's blowing up damaged cells in search of that atom. This is good. Really. Damaged cells are the ones that get infected first and spread the infection the most. That also helps to get rid of some of the venom in the wound. Repeatedly flood the wound with the stuff. There are no side effects as used hydrogen peroxide becomes dihydrogen oxide, aka water.
Dimethylxanthine, aka chocolate. Psychoactive central nervous system stimulant. Naww. You don't need that. BUT! BUT BUT BUT BUT!!!! If there is any reason to suspect, ANY REASON, that anaphylaxis or nervous system disorders may come down, please don't eat or drink anything. In paramedic parlance we call that loading the cannon. You may become nauseated. Drowning on your own vomit is a very sucky way to go out and the big spit really makes CPR harder and very messy.
Aspirin, Excedrin and similar. (Excedrin is a combination of aspirin, paracetamol (acetaminophen) and caffeine). Aspirin is a blood thinner. Not all that good an idea. Paracetamol isn't that good an idea either as the threshold between therapeutic dose and lethal can be a bit fuzzy. Caffeine? See dimethylxanthine.
Alcohol wipes. Moderately effective in reducing/preventing infection if scrubbed pretty hard. Povidone iodine Betadyne<tm> is much more effective.
Band aids. Natch. Let's keep the dirt out.
If you have taken any drug keep track of it. If you need to see a physician, tell him what you have ingested. This is especially important with prescribed medications. Also, know the side effects and contraindications of all drugs you ingest, be it recreational, OTC or prescribed.
Ingesting alcoholic beverages. You've already got a problem. Suppressing the central nervous system and general physiological responses isn't likely to help.
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