Which of us has not fallen or injured our arm or leg? When we broke the knee, my mother smeared it with green paint and sealed it with a band-aid. But what if the damage is more serious? How to stop the blood? How to provide emergency assistance to a person on the verge of death? Everyone should know the answers to these and other questions. Therefore, we consider what wounds are and how to help a person cope with injuries.
What is a wound?
A wound is a violation of the integrity of an organ or tissue as a result of the action of a mechanical factor, accompanied by bleeding, pain or divergence of the edges.
Wounds can occur for completely different reasons. Some appear as a result of an accidental combination of circumstances, others after surgery, and others as a result of the actions of people around. The classification is very extensive. Consider what wounds are.
Types of wounds
In relation to the human body:
- Penetrating - wounds that go inside the body and cause damage to internal organs. This condition is very dangerous, because the degree of damage is not visible from the outside. Internal bleeding without first aid can lead to death.
- Non-penetrating.
What are the wounds due to the circumstances of receipt:
Often, an infection begins to develop at the site of damage. Depending on the degree of sepsis, there are:
- purulent wounds;
- contaminated - random, but without signs of suppuration;
- aseptic - after surgical operations using antibacterial agents.
The largest classification group differs in the application mechanism and the type of wounding item:
- chipped;
- cut;
- chopped;
- bruised;
- torn;
- bitten;
- scalped;
- gunshot.
For the first time, we come across the concept of first aid in life history classes. What are the wounds, their features and the nature of the damage, we will consider in more detail.
Cut wounds
The reason for their occurrence is the impact of a sharp object on the skin area. It can be anything: a piece of glass, metal, a razor or other household items. You can even get hurt by paper. Under high pressure, mechanical damage divides the tissues into two halves. The peculiarity is that the wound area itself is small, but can be of different depths.
The pain is not severe, but there may be profuse bleeding if the wound has damaged the main blood vessels. An object that has damaged the tissue or its particles may remain in the wound. In this case, it will be easy to remove. In this type of injury, rupture of muscles, tendons, nerve endings is not excluded. If a sharp object has gone very deep, you will have to stitch. In cases of minor damage, the wound will heal itself.
Stab wounds
Returning to the question of what kind of wounds are (special attention is paid to this topic in the 5th grade on OBZh), you need to know that puncture damage is separately distinguished. They differ in that the blow is delivered with a sharp long object, with deep penetration. These items include: knife, knitting needle, awl, sharpening, bayonet, sword. The main feature is damage to internal tissues, possibly organs. This type of wound has a small inlet, but it is very difficult to predict which organ is damaged inside. If a blow was struck in the heart, sudden death may occur. Therefore, if the item remains inside the wound, it is better not to remove it until the ambulance arrives.
Chipped injuries have complications. The inlet tightens very quickly, because it is narrow, and favorable conditions for the development of infection are created inside. The next stage - pus spreads through the body, general sepsis with intoxication and high fever may begin. In addition, without urgent care, bleeding and hematomas of internal organs can lead to sad consequences, including death.
Chopped wounds
We have already examined what wounds a person has, depending on the subject of damage: stabbed and cutted. But there is a third type - chopped. In this case, the blow is struck by a sharp heavy object with great force in the perpendicular direction or at an angle to the tissues. It can be: an ax, a saber, a saber, a sword.
Characteristic features are: deep penetration, a large area of damage, contusion of nearby tissues. The wound is accompanied by severe pain, heavy bleeding, internal and external hematomas. Blood vessels, nerves, bones, internal organs can be damaged.
Bruised wounds
We continue to consider what wounds are. Another type is bruises. They arise as a result of the impact of a blunt hard object on the tissue in those places where there is a solid support in the form of bones. This type of damage is very common in everyday life. Anything can fall on a leg: a chair, a magnet, a hammer, a pot.
Often, bruised wounds are not accompanied by external injuries. The skin remains intact, but internal ruptures of muscles, tendons, blood vessels, nerve endings may occur. For bruises, the presence of hematomas is characteristic.
If the blow was so strong that it damaged the skin, then the edges of the wound will be uneven, they will be impregnated with blood and lose their vitality, which leads to necrosis. A very strong pain syndrome is observed. A person may even lose consciousness. This type of wound is characterized by damage to the bones, their crushing.
Lacerations
About what types of wounds are, much has been written in medical directories. But not all sources identify lacerations in a separate group. This type of damage is somewhat similar to a bruise, but has a more serious scale. Most often occurs as a result of a sharp blow with a heavy sharp object, during accidents, collisions, accidents.
Torn wounds are characterized by extensive skin damage, torn joints, muscles, blood vessels. Damage to bone integrity is possible. Such an injury is accompanied by heavy bleeding, pain, dark brown clots accumulate in the wound.
If you are interested in what color a wreck is, then it is usually transparent with a yellowish tint. When combined with blood cells, clots become burgundy or dark brown. With severe wounds of the sucrose, a lot is released.
Bite wounds
As the name implies, they arise as a result of an animal or human bite. But unlike all other types of wounds, the danger lies in the fact that there is a high probability of contracting dangerous diseases or dying from poison.
The damage area is small. But due to the fact that the skin is affected by a dangerous microflora, local or general complications often arise.
Dangerous bites of protein, rats, mice. They are carriers of "rat disease" (sodoku). From dogs, foxes can catch rabies.
Poison wounds
They develop due to the bite of poisonous insects or creeping reptiles. A poisonous substance enters the human body, which spreads in the blood and blocks the work of many organs and systems, leads to severe neurological diseases or is the cause of death.
The most poisonous snakes: viper, rattlesnake, cobra, shchitomordnik.
The most dangerous insects: rat fleas, fire ants, encephalitis tick, brown hermit spider, tsetse fly.
First aid for a snakebite is as follows:
1. Put the panic back and lay the victim on the ground. Put something soft under your head. Horizontal position will slow the distribution of poison.
2. If it is not known exactly what kind of snake has bitten, you need to watch the victim. The absence of edema, pain suggests that the animal was not toxic. If it is known that the victim is in mortal danger, since the snake was poisonous, you must immediately proceed to the following actions.
3. In the place above the bite, apply a tourniquet to prevent the distribution of poison through the bloodstream.
4. Start sucking the poison out of the wound. This can be done if there is no mucosal damage in the mouth of the rescuer.
5. Give a lot to drink before the ambulance arrives.
Gunshot wounds
We examined what wounds can be as a result of exposure to various objects. But there is another type - gunshot wounds that arise at the moment when a person is shot from a firearm. Such injuries damage tissues, go far inward or penetrate through. They heal for a very long time and have severe complications.
Features of gunshot wounds :
- nerve endings, muscles, vessels are damaged;
- accompanied by fractures of bones, torso, head;
- the functioning of internal organs is disturbed: lungs, liver, spleen;
- death is possible in most cases.
Gunshot wounds are divided by the nature of penetration into:
- blind - the bullet remains inside the body;
- through - the bullet goes through;
- tangents - a bullet only partially clings to the skin without getting inside.
First aid
What wounds are, we told in detail, it's time to move on to the question of how to help the victim.
Before providing emergency care, you need to determine the type of injury. But there are special recommendations that you need to know and apply in any case.
1. Stop the bleeding. If the blood does not beat with a fountain with great force, then it is venous or capillary. We apply a tight bandage. Otherwise, arterial bleeding is observed, which can be stopped by applying a tourniquet above the damaged area.
2. The wound is treated with 3% hydrogen peroxide, the skin around it with any antiseptic.
3. If bruised, immediately apply cold.
Categorically not:
1. Flush the wound with water.
2. Pour in brilliant green, iodine or other means.
3. Independently remove stuck parts of the impact object or bone fragments.
4. Apply cotton wool, ointments, powders.
5. In case of abdominal injury, do not give the victim a drink.
If the victim faints, try to bring him to his senses. You need to constantly talk with him, keep in touch.
In a panic, do not forget to call an ambulance immediately after the incident. If you wait for the car for too long, you need to try to transport the victim yourself, giving him a comfortable sitting or lying position.