What wound be the proper usage for non-adherent dressing?

[ThatEMTGuy]

Just want to make sure i got it right for when the time comes.

 

[jcroteau]

Personally, I use it as the bottom layer for all wound care. That way when it's taken off it doesn't take the scab/start bleeding again.

 

[STXmedic]

Am I the only one reading the title of this thread like a pirate?...

 

[medichopeful]

Are you talking about Telfa pads? Any time there's a potential for the dressing to stick to the wound.

 

[ecphotoman]

I always use non adherent dressings for burns.

 

[Akulahawk]

What would be the proper time to use a non-stick dressing? Anytime there's a possibility of a dressing sticking to a wound and you don't want/need that to happen. If you're using the dressing as part of a wound debridement program, you wouldn't be using a non-stick dressing....

Now if you're referring to stuff like "Coban" then that's a different issue. You would use that stuff any time you don't want the wrap to stick. It only sticks to itself. I call it "vet wrap" because vets use it all the time to keep things in place. Adherent tape and dog fur isn't exactly a fun combination for the dog. I used the self-adherent wrap just the other day. A pile of 4x4's and some vet wrap makes for a pretty cheap and disposable wound dressing. An ace wrap does work but if you know you're going to use a wrap once and throw it away, don't use the ace wrap. Use the vet wrap stuff. Works pretty well.

 

[NomadicMedic]

I always have a roll of vet wrap in my pocket. It works great for securing IVs on little old ladies with paper thin skin too.

(My wife is a vet and orders it by the case. I usually grab a roll or two.)

 

[ecphotoman]

I always have a roll of vet wrap in my pocket. It works great for securing IVs on little old ladies with paper thin skin too.

(My wife is a vet and orders it by the case. I usually grab a roll or two.)

Does it work better than coban?

 

[Handsome Robb]

Does it work better than coban?

It's the exact same thing.

 

[DesertMedic66]

It's the exact same thing.

Yep. Label it for humans and it's usually more expensive, label it for animals and it's usually very cheap.

 

[Akulahawk]

Yep. Label it for humans and it's usually more expensive, label it for animals and it's usually very cheap.

Exactly. Same eXact Thing... SXT but it ain't a Winchester product.

For some applications, I also like adhesive versions of vet wrap. Kendall Sher-Light is one of those kinds of products that I've used when I need light compression and to adhere the tape to skin.

 

[OnceAnEMT]

Huh. Never heard it called "vet wrap", but knew it was common there. I know it from the AT world, the more common model being PowerFlex. Awesome for bandaging just about everything from a volleyball player's elbow to a lineman's knee if you know how to use the stuff. We use "Coban" (as mentioned, same thing) in the ED for IV tie downs as needed. I carry it in my SAR pack. It really is good stuff. Can't say I care for the name "vet wrap" though

 

[Tigger]

Coban is awesome stuff.

As for non-adherehent dressings, I've never worked anywhere that carried them aside from burn dressings. Can't really think of a time where I was like "mmm a Telfa pad would be ideal here."

In the training room that was totally different.

 

[OnceAnEMT]

Coban is awesome stuff.

As for non-adherehent dressings, I've never worked anywhere that carried them aside from burn dressings. Can't really think of a time where I was like "mmm a Telfa pad would be ideal here."

In the training room that was totally different.

Exactly. Its not really a dressing for emergencies. If you've got time, sure, but once bleeding is mostly stopped I often use straight Coban if I know the wound will be cleaned within a few hours.

 

[Brandon O]

Helpful to distinguish abd pads (which are sorta non-stick) from true non-stick dressings.

 

[redundantbassist]

They're more of a minor wound dressing more than anything. My service doesn't even carry them last time I checked.

 

[Frozennoodle]

They are for minor abrasions and burns where you don't want the dressing to adhere to the wound as others have said. They are not good for bleeding control but are good for preventing contamination of a burn or an abrasion. A dressing must be porous and sterile in the event of a bleed. The point of the dressing is not to wick blood away from the wound but to provide a lattice to expedite clot formation. The blood clings to the fibers of the dressing and begins to clot. In bleeding control, we want to make sure that we keep the dressing on the wound to allow the clots to form and so we do not remove the clots that have already formed. The only exception to this rule is in the event you are using a bulky dressing, like an ABD pad, and you see that the dressing is bleeding through. Bleed through on such a large dressing indicates that you have not properly controlled the bleeding and need to reassess the wound and interventions and must remove that bulky dressing to do so.

 

[Akulahawk]

Earlier today I spent the better part of a half an hour removing a very clotted dressing... the bleeding was pretty decently controlled by then but the dressing needed to be removed. It only took a good amount of saline to loosen the dressing, but it did work reasonably well. If someone had put a non-stick pad on there from the beginning, removal would have been easier, but it would have been harder to obtain good bleeding control. There are tradeoffs in using them.

 

[irishboxer384]

you mean...one of these?

 

[Akulahawk]

you mean...one of these?

You mean the instant nose packing device?

I, for one, don't particularly like the idea of having a string hanging from a nostril...