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One prominent example is superglue, which started being used by medics in the Vietnam War to control bleeding until a soldier could get to a hospital. Now you c

One prominent example is superglue, which started being used by medics in the Vietnam War to control bleeding until a soldier could get to a hospital. Now you can buy special medical versions of the stuff at any drug store.

maxerickson 8y ago
I recently looked at a couple places and couldn't find it.
- aaaaaaaaaaab 8y ago
  Regular cyanoacrylate aka “superglue” is perfectly safe for wound closure (after cleaning and disinfecting of course).
  - vonmoltke 8y ago
    The issue is not the compound itself, it's the impurities in the packaged substance. You don't know what possibly-toxic impurities or allergens might be present in a tube of hardware store adhesive, since they probably don't affect the glue's ability to do its intended job.
    - jschwartzi 8y ago
      Also cyanoacrylate glue has a tendancy to react exothermically with cotton, which is a common bandage material. For the layman this means that it can get burning hot if you get some on a cotton bandage. The medical-grade superglue does not have this problem.
    - darkpuma 8y ago
      If you have the opportunity to use something better, then obviously use something better. But in practice these objections are not a huge deal for the vast majority of people closing their wounds with CA glue. Pro-tip: you don't need to put the CA glue inside your wound. Squeeze your wound together, put the CA glue on either side of it on your intact skin, then place a piece of thread across the wound, fasted to the skin on both sides with the CA glue. The effect is a do-it-yourself suture without needing a needle. And YES, it's exothermic with the thread. So obviously don't use a lot of it. Use the absolute bare minimum and don't attempt it with wounds severe enough that a lot would be required. If you slather on the glue than slap a patch of denim over the wound, you're going to get burned badly. Don't do that.
      - dTal 8y ago
        How do you hold the wound shut, hold the thread in place, and apply glue all at the same time without getting the glue everywhere, especially over the hand holding the thread? I always just use a single-ply piece of paper tissue, and soak that in the glue. It's too thin to hold much glue, so it doesn't get that hot - if you need more strength, you can add more layers. And it can be applied one handed - place tissue over wound and apply glue. Done.
    - aaaaaaaaaaab 8y ago
      Cyanoacrylate rapidly hardens when it contacts moisture, so impurities are of little concern in my opinion, as they will be trapped in the polymerized glue (mixed with some clotted blood). According to medical literature, people regularly ingest superglue without any issues (mostly children). They even put it in their eyes accidentally (it turns out that it's a bad idea to store your nail glue in the same drawer as your eyedrops, especially with impaired vision) without any damage aside from a few days of discomfort.
dsfyu404ed 8y ago
IIRC they use powdered mashed potatoes now. I'm not sure if there's an official "medical powdered mashed potatoes" that doctors use.
lenticular 8y ago
Superglue is extremely effective at paper cuts, and sealing cuts in cold, dry weather that otherwise crack further. Any small "slice" type injury I use it over a bandage.
- dalore 8y ago
  You can get spray like bandages now. Which feels like a combination of glue and some sterilization stuff added in. Stings a little bit and then dries out and sticks like glue.
- freedomben 8y ago
  It is very effective and I've used it successfully at least a dozen times. However, you virtually guarantee a scar if you use super glue. Most of us dudes don't care (as long as it's not on the face), but it's something to think about when treating others.
en-us 8y ago
I think I've read that superglue was invented in WWI for exactly this purpose. But beware that closing up a wound increases the chance of infection, so only do this if you're sure that you've been able to sterilize the wound first or if there is no other option for stopping the bleeding. Otherwise it's best to leave the wound open and wrapped with bandages, and make sure to change the bandages at regular intervals.
- edoo 8y ago
  Nowadays they have blood clot kits you just pour into the wound. It solidifies very quickly stopping most external blood loss but has to be surgically removed by the attending physicians.
  - failrate 8y ago
    If you need to clot a wound and have only common household products, ground black pepper and coffee grounds make for excellent temporary scab substrates.
    - cimmanom 8y ago
      That sounds incredibly painful.
- jschwartzi 8y ago
  If you need to control bleeding quickly you can also use hemostatic gauze which contains a clotting agent such as kaolin clay. The gauze can be used to pack arterial wounds where a tourniquet can't be used. I keep a pack of it in my backcountry first aid kit in case someone's bleeding from an artery and I can't get a tourniquet on it, which sometimes happens when the artery retracts into the body after a cut. https://www.amazon.com/QuikClot-Advanced-Clotting-Kaolin-Strips/dp/B00HJTH5L2/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1549911019&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=QuickClot+Gauze&psc=1 https://www.amazon.com/QuikClot-Advanced-Clotting-Kaolin-Str... Be sure you know how to use it before you need to use it though.
  - 8y ago
jbeckham 8y ago
I actually use this one all the time. I do a little wood working and if I slice open a finger, I just grab my Rockler CA glue, put some on, squeeze the slice shut and wait about a minute. If you purchase liquid bandage in a drug store, it is just sterile CA glue.
- learc83 8y ago
  I think I've read that medical cyanoacrylate based glues don't heat up as much when they cure, so they're less likely to cause burns.
m463 8y ago
There used to be a product (I believe from johnson and johnson) called liquid bandage. It was a two-part formula, combining a treated applicator like a cotton swab and a bottle of adhesive. You had a cut, you put a drop of liquid from the bottle onto the end of one of the swabs and touched it to the cut on your finger or wherever. The two parts together formed the adhesive. It instantly secured the skin together. It was the BEST. It would fix a paper cut immediately and securely. You would not accidentally dribble adhesive and stick your fingers together. They pulled it from the market, for some reason shrouded in mystery. Now all you can find is nexcare nu-skin which is not very good at all. (Basically it sort of covers your skin, but doesn't secure anything) very sad.
- voltagex_ 8y ago
  Weird, can't find anything about it at all. https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/wellness/2002/07/09/cutting-edge-for-scrapes/6a9e37ae-235c-4425-b9bc-8bbfc06a5a1b https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/wellness/20...
  - m463 8y ago
    The only references I can find is in the review comments for a short-lived (inferior) replacement product on amazon: https://www.amzn.com/B00006IDL4 https://www.amzn.com/B00006IDL4 They basically all agreed the original worked very well.
- daurnimator 8y ago
  TIL that that is not what neosporin is. Since hearing about that liquid bandage thing back in the 00s, I started hearing about people in the US putting "neosporin" on minor injuries; I had just assumed it was the liquid bandage stuff. I only just googled what neosporin was now.... it's a topical antibiotic.
- LoSboccacc 8y ago
  they used to sell alum sticks around here for small cuts. they're still available online, albeit rarish, but they're very convenient.

maxerickson 8y ago

I recently looked at a couple places and couldn't find it.

aaaaaaaaaaab 8y ago
Regular cyanoacrylate aka “superglue” is perfectly safe for wound closure (after cleaning and disinfecting of course).
- vonmoltke 8y ago
  The issue is not the compound itself, it's the impurities in the packaged substance. You don't know what possibly-toxic impurities or allergens might be present in a tube of hardware store adhesive, since they probably don't affect the glue's ability to do its intended job.
  - jschwartzi 8y ago
    Also cyanoacrylate glue has a tendancy to react exothermically with cotton, which is a common bandage material. For the layman this means that it can get burning hot if you get some on a cotton bandage. The medical-grade superglue does not have this problem.
  - darkpuma 8y ago
    If you have the opportunity to use something better, then obviously use something better. But in practice these objections are not a huge deal for the vast majority of people closing their wounds with CA glue. Pro-tip: you don't need to put the CA glue inside your wound. Squeeze your wound together, put the CA glue on either side of it on your intact skin, then place a piece of thread across the wound, fasted to the skin on both sides with the CA glue. The effect is a do-it-yourself suture without needing a needle. And YES, it's exothermic with the thread. So obviously don't use a lot of it. Use the absolute bare minimum and don't attempt it with wounds severe enough that a lot would be required. If you slather on the glue than slap a patch of denim over the wound, you're going to get burned badly. Don't do that.
    - dTal 8y ago
      How do you hold the wound shut, hold the thread in place, and apply glue all at the same time without getting the glue everywhere, especially over the hand holding the thread? I always just use a single-ply piece of paper tissue, and soak that in the glue. It's too thin to hold much glue, so it doesn't get that hot - if you need more strength, you can add more layers. And it can be applied one handed - place tissue over wound and apply glue. Done.
  - aaaaaaaaaaab 8y ago
    Cyanoacrylate rapidly hardens when it contacts moisture, so impurities are of little concern in my opinion, as they will be trapped in the polymerized glue (mixed with some clotted blood). According to medical literature, people regularly ingest superglue without any issues (mostly children). They even put it in their eyes accidentally (it turns out that it's a bad idea to store your nail glue in the same drawer as your eyedrops, especially with impaired vision) without any damage aside from a few days of discomfort.

dsfyu404ed 8y ago

IIRC they use powdered mashed potatoes now. I'm not sure if there's an official "medical powdered mashed potatoes" that doctors use.

lenticular 8y ago

Superglue is extremely effective at paper cuts, and sealing cuts in cold, dry weather that otherwise crack further. Any small "slice" type injury I use it over a bandage.

dalore 8y ago
You can get spray like bandages now. Which feels like a combination of glue and some sterilization stuff added in. Stings a little bit and then dries out and sticks like glue.
freedomben 8y ago
It is very effective and I've used it successfully at least a dozen times. However, you virtually guarantee a scar if you use super glue. Most of us dudes don't care (as long as it's not on the face), but it's something to think about when treating others.

en-us 8y ago

I think I've read that superglue was invented in WWI for exactly this purpose. But beware that closing up a wound increases the chance of infection, so only do this if you're sure that you've been able to sterilize the wound first or if there is no other option for stopping the bleeding. Otherwise it's best to leave the wound open and wrapped with bandages, and make sure to change the bandages at regular intervals.

edoo 8y ago
Nowadays they have blood clot kits you just pour into the wound. It solidifies very quickly stopping most external blood loss but has to be surgically removed by the attending physicians.
- failrate 8y ago
  If you need to clot a wound and have only common household products, ground black pepper and coffee grounds make for excellent temporary scab substrates.
  - cimmanom 8y ago
    That sounds incredibly painful.
jschwartzi 8y ago
If you need to control bleeding quickly you can also use hemostatic gauze which contains a clotting agent such as kaolin clay. The gauze can be used to pack arterial wounds where a tourniquet can't be used. I keep a pack of it in my backcountry first aid kit in case someone's bleeding from an artery and I can't get a tourniquet on it, which sometimes happens when the artery retracts into the body after a cut. https://www.amazon.com/QuikClot-Advanced-Clotting-Kaolin-Strips/dp/B00HJTH5L2/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1549911019&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=QuickClot+Gauze&psc=1 https://www.amazon.com/QuikClot-Advanced-Clotting-Kaolin-Str... Be sure you know how to use it before you need to use it though.
- 8y ago

jbeckham 8y ago

I actually use this one all the time. I do a little wood working and if I slice open a finger, I just grab my Rockler CA glue, put some on, squeeze the slice shut and wait about a minute. If you purchase liquid bandage in a drug store, it is just sterile CA glue.

learc83 8y ago
I think I've read that medical cyanoacrylate based glues don't heat up as much when they cure, so they're less likely to cause burns.

m463 8y ago

There used to be a product (I believe from johnson and johnson) called liquid bandage. It was a two-part formula, combining a treated applicator like a cotton swab and a bottle of adhesive. You had a cut, you put a drop of liquid from the bottle onto the end of one of the swabs and touched it to the cut on your finger or wherever. The two parts together formed the adhesive. It instantly secured the skin together. It was the BEST. It would fix a paper cut immediately and securely. You would not accidentally dribble adhesive and stick your fingers together. They pulled it from the market, for some reason shrouded in mystery. Now all you can find is nexcare nu-skin which is not very good at all. (Basically it sort of covers your skin, but doesn't secure anything) very sad.

voltagex_ 8y ago
Weird, can't find anything about it at all. https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/wellness/2002/07/09/cutting-edge-for-scrapes/6a9e37ae-235c-4425-b9bc-8bbfc06a5a1b https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/wellness/20...
- m463 8y ago
  The only references I can find is in the review comments for a short-lived (inferior) replacement product on amazon: https://www.amzn.com/B00006IDL4 https://www.amzn.com/B00006IDL4 They basically all agreed the original worked very well.
daurnimator 8y ago
TIL that that is not what neosporin is. Since hearing about that liquid bandage thing back in the 00s, I started hearing about people in the US putting "neosporin" on minor injuries; I had just assumed it was the liquid bandage stuff. I only just googled what neosporin was now.... it's a topical antibiotic.
LoSboccacc 8y ago
they used to sell alum sticks around here for small cuts. they're still available online, albeit rarish, but they're very convenient.