Arterial bleeding is the most dangerous, regardless of the cause of its occurrence. That is why you need to immediately provide first aid to the victim . To do this, you need to clearly know the signs of arterial bleeding.
Types of bleeding
Specialists distinguish two groups of bleeding: by the type of vascular damage and by external signs.
The first group includes the following bleeding:
- Arterial. The most dangerous type of bleeding, as a large amount of blood loss can occur in the shortest possible time.
- Venous bleeding. It is characterized by a lower hemorrhage rate. Less dangerous than the previous species, however, if the vessels of the neck are damaged, death can occur due to the possible absorption of air.
- Capillary bleeding. Often it can be observed with minor injuries such as abrasions, cuts and scratches. It is characterized by slight bleeding, which poses no threat to life.
- Mixed bleeding. This species is characterized by the presence of signs of arterial, venous and capillary hemorrhage simultaneously. For example, mixed bleeding can be observed with separation of the limb. It is very dangerous because there is arterial bleeding.
By external signs, bleeding is divided into the following:
- Outdoor. With it, as a rule, skin lesions of various degrees are observed.
- Inner. May be due to blunt injuries of various parts of the body, such as the chest and abdomen. In such situations, damage to the internal organs of a person occurs. The main signs that indicate internal bleeding are weakness, thirst, dizziness, loss of consciousness, nausea, sometimes vomiting, changes in the skin, low blood pressure.
Signs of external arterial bleeding
Such bleeding is a completely natural reaction of the body to all kinds of damage to arteries, including mechanical injuries and impaired vascular permeability.
Any bleeding can be dangerous, whatever you call it. The signs of arterial bleeding, which should be closely monitored, are as follows:
- First of all, it is the color of blood that flows from the wound. Arterial bleeding is characterized by a bright scarlet color. It turns out so because of the large amount of oxygen in the blood.
- The special nature of the flow of blood. Due to the high pressure in these vessels, the blood will pulsate in the form of a jet or fountain.
- The bleeding rate is quite high, especially with damage to especially large arteries. In such situations, a person can literally lose almost the entire amount of blood in just a few minutes. This can be fatal.
- Due to the loss of a large amount of blood, the skin of a person acquires a pale bluish color.
- When measuring blood pressure, you can see that it is decreasing. A person complains of dizziness, darkening in the eyes and nausea. May even faint.
First aid for arterial bleeding
First aid should be urgently needed, since the preservation of human life directly depends on this.
If you suspect a person has arterial bleeding (the signs of arterial bleeding are indicated above), first of all you need to conduct a thorough examination to determine all the sources. Open lesions are striking, so they can be detected quite easily. Wounds that are covered with clothing can go unnoticed, and this is very dangerous. The main thing during the examination is to determine the presence of acute blood loss, regardless of the size of the wound in the victim. It is also worth checking the victim’s breathing, pulse and pressure.
First aid for external arterial bleeding is to apply a pressure bandage. If you find damage to large vessels, then stop the blood loss by pressing the artery with your finger. It should be remembered that this method is temporary. Usually this is done so that there is time to carefully prepare a pressure bandage.
If external injuries to the extremities are observed, then a pressure dressing, as a rule, is not enough. In such cases, it is better to use a tourniquet or its equivalent. Handy tools such as a tie, belt, kerchief or handkerchief may be suitable. It is necessary to impose it a few centimeters above the bleeding site, after which it is necessary to leave a note indicating the time of application of the tourniquet. You can leave it for a certain period: up to two hours in the summer and up to 30 minutes in the winter. During this time, you need to deliver the victim to the hospital.
Types of venous bleeding
Venous bleeding is more common than arterial bleeding. This is due to the location of the venous vessels. They are in close proximity to the skin and are therefore more susceptible to damage.
There are three main types of venous bleeding:
- blood loss from the superficial veins of the limbs;
- bleeding from deep veins;
- damage to the veins of the neck.
Each type of venous bleeding has its own dangers and can lead to death if medical attention is not provided on time.
Signs of venous bleeding
Signs of arterial and venous bleeding have some differences.
The main symptoms of venous hemorrhage are (characteristic signs of arterial bleeding can be seen above):
- The presence of damage to the skin. Can be chopped, cut, gunshot and others. Damage is observed in those places where veins are localized in large numbers.
- The flow of blood does not interrupt.
- The color of the venous blood is dark red because it is saturated with carbon dioxide.
- Bleeding mainly occurs from the peripheral part of a vessel that has been damaged.
- If you press a vein directly near the wound through the skin, the blood flow decreases.
First aid for venous bleeding
Assistance to the victim in this case depends entirely on the nature of the damage. If the superficial veins are damaged, first of all, it is necessary to crush the damaged vessel and rinse the wound with hydrogen peroxide or bandage the affected area by inserting a swab with an antiseptic. Finally, stopping severe bleeding will help wound closure.
If deep veins are damaged, it is necessary to push tampons with hydrogen peroxide into the wounds. After this procedure, you need to apply a pressure circular bandage, and quite tight. All further actions should be carried out by the doctor, and the sooner he begins to treat the wound, the better for the patient.
If damage to the vessels of the neck is observed, it is required to press the ends of the bleeding vein through the skin with your fingers, and to clamp the vessel in the wound itself. After that, you need to put tampons with hydrogen peroxide. After first aid, the doctor should suture.
When providing first aid for various bleeding, you need to be calm and strictly follow the sequence of actions.