First Aid Cut Guide
HOW TO BE AN ADULT
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We've all cut a finger and needed first aid. Maybe it happens while you're using your grandmother's antique letter opener to unseal some long-anticipated correspondence from a dear friend. More likely, you slip up while doing something way more mundane, like cutting the crust off a PB&J.

No matter what the task is, you're an adult, and suddenly — sharp object meets flesh. You've accidentally cut yourself. What, exactly, do you do?

Should You Go To The Hospital?

Hopefully, this isn't an urgent question, but the first thing you should determine is if this cut is bad enough to warrant a trip to the ER. If bleeding is profuse1 or won't stop, congratulations! Please get to a professional ASAP. WebMD recommends consulting a doctor if any of following circumstances apply to you:

The wound is on your face.
The edges of the cut are jagged or gape open, the cut is deep (1/4 inch or more), or you can see fat or muscle. These are signs that you may need stitches.
You can't get all of the dirt or debris out of the wound, or the wound was caused by something very dirty or rusty.
You have a puncture wound or a cut and haven't had a tetanus shot in the past 5 years.
The wound is from an animal or human bite.
The injured area feels numb.

[WebMD]

On the way to the hospital, do your best to keep pressure on the cut and to elevate the wound above heart level (same principles apply for moderate bleeding control). Not in need of a trip to the ER? Read on for home treatment tips and how to stop mild bleeding.

You Gotta Clean That Cut Out

Soap And Water Is Fine

If you can stand the sight of it, letting a small cut bleed a bit at first can start the cleansing process. Make sure to wash your hands before proceeding. Then, take advice from VeryWell's Rob Brouhard, a real-life EMT, and don't overthink things:

There's no need to get fancy here. Some of the best trauma centers in the country use plain ol' tap water to rinse cuts, which is what I recommend. […] If it's particularly grimy, a tiny bit of soap and a clean washcloth might be necessary to get all the dirt out.

[VeryWell]

That's about all you need to know for cleaning a cut. Overdoing it with the soap could cause minor irritation, so use something mild or diluted if it's handy.

No You Don't Need Hydrogen Peroxide Or Rubbing Alcohol

You may already know this, but hydrogen peroxide's longstanding reputation as the go-to home antiseptic is less than deserved. That prickly bubbling show isn't indicative of better bacteria elimination. HowStuffWorks explains that the bubbles result from a reaction between catalase, a protein present in blood and other cells, and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), splitting the latter to form water (H2O) and pure oxygen (O2, hence the bubbles). Don't reach for iodine either, says the Mayo Clinic:

There's no need to use hydrogen peroxide, iodine or an iodine-containing cleanser, which can be irritating to tissue already injured.

[Mayo Clinic]

Hydrogen peroxide is, at best, moderately antiseptic while still being mildly irritating.2 Let About.com's Chemistry section put the final nail in hydrogen peroxide's coffin3: a little will kill bacteria, a little more will kill some fibroblast cells — the cells that'll help your skin heal nicely.

Rubbing alcohol isn't any better, really. You've already got a cut — spare yourself the burning sensation and just use water. Ultimately, you're trying to flush anything nasty away from the wound and then let your body's natural processes do the real work. Other antiseptics won't accomplish anything close to total sterility, so rinse with water and soap.

If you've got an antibiotic ointment at the ready, you can apply it once the wound is dry. On Johnson & Johnson's site for Neosporin, there are no spurious claims about speeding up or enhancing recovery, only pain reduction and infection prevention.

The Journal of Family Practice points to some studies that give topical ointments a thumbs up for infection prevention, but they also note that the type of injury and frequency of application vary wildly in these studies. If you have one of these ointments, simply read the instructions to figure out if it's OK to apply to your cut, and always avoid applying directly from the tube.

Now Stop The Bleeding

If the injury is a bit more serious than a scratch or nick, you'll need to exercise more care in halting the flow of blood. Apply pressure to the area with paper towel, clean terry cloth towels or gauze if you've got it. If what you're using soaks through, don't remove and replace it — adding another layer will keep coagulation going. 

If the cut is on the arm or hand, refer to our EMT friend's advice and put your hand in the air (like you really do care):

Elevate the wound above the heart. By elevating the wound, you slow the flow of blood. As the blood slows, it becomes easier to stop it with direct pressure. Remember, the wound must be above the heart and you must keep direct pressure on it.

[VeryWell]

If you can't lift the wound above the heart, just focus on keeping pressure applied. If the bleeding hasn't stopped or has gotten worse after fifteen minutes, it's time to call 911 or find your way to the nearest ER.

Put A Bandage On It

If you've got a teeny tiny cut on a place that won't get rubbed or come into contact with clothing (like on back of your hand, or on the neck after shaving) you might not even bother with a bandage. Just keep the area clean and let your cells get to work. 

Alternatively, you might find yourself staring at an array of adhesive bandages from one of those ubiquitous variety packs. You probably know what to do with a simple strip: line up the gauze over the cut and follow the curve of the body part.

As for applying those more unconventional bandages, look no further than cyclists — those road rash experts. Trailblazing cyclists can show you how to apply funky looking bandages, and they offer sage wisdom on plastic versus fabric: 

Plastic strips are somewhat less likely to catch and roll up when the bandage is on an area that's subject to friction. Fabric bandages have their advantages. For the typical mountain biker, cloth bandages will work better on-trail. They're more flexible, breathe better, and more comfortable. Bandages should be changed at least daily. After a day of wear, the adhesive on a cloth bandages tend to leave sticky deposits on your skin, and the fabric tends to fray.

[UtahMountainBiking]

Never apply a bandage so tight that it affects circulation — this goes for rolled gauze or elastic, which the good old Mayo Clinic suggests substituting if adhesive bandages irritate your skin.

Wait, Does This Look Infected?

You've stopped the bleeding, cleaned and dressed the wound. Sometime later, things don't seem quite right. Is it an infection? Don't panic. Again, let's refer to WebMD for the extremely straightforward signs of infection for a cut or scrape:

Redness, swelling, and warmth
Increasing pain
Pus or drainage from the cut
Fever
Red streaks around the wound

[WebMD]

On the bright side, it'll be pretty hard to misread something like swelling or pus. If the road to recovery starts to look a little red and leaky, don't let things fester — contact a physician.

Of Scabs And Scars

Leave That Dang Scab Alone

Scabs can be ugly and a real annoyance. You might avoid typical scab formation if you've got a small wound that's kept clean, moist and under a bandage. But if you've got a caked-over blood clot hanging out on your skin, don't pick it! As Mental Floss explains, scab formation is a good thing:

To hold the clot in place, a thread-like protein called fibrin begins to form a structure throughout the clot. As the fibrin and platelets dry out and your cut is no longer bleeding, a shield-like cap we know as a scab forms over the area as a way to protect the wound from infection while the new skin is created. It's kind of like an organic bandage made by your own body.

[Mental Floss]

Scars Are Inevitable

You probably know, roughly, what a scar is. Need a refresher? Take it straight from dermatologists at Columbia University: most scar tissue is fibrous — it's formed by a different process4 than regular skin regeneration, hence the difference in appearance. 

There are many creams and oils sold on the claim that they help diminish the appearance of scarring while healing is underway. Should you run to the store and grab a tincture?

To put it bluntly: no. Like many too-good-to-be-true beauty secrets, the most commonly suggested scar reducers don't do much of anything. Over at Paula's Choice, a site dedicated to selling hyper-specific skin care products, they deflate the rumors and recommend you leave things alone for a while:

Allow the wound to "breathe" as much as possible. Do not gunk up the area with creams, oils, or vitamin E from capsules because these substances have occlusive textures that can impede healing during the first stages when the skin is trying to repair itself. The fluid that is produced naturally around a wound (known as exudate) is fine by itself for the first few days.

[PaulasChoice]

Past those first few days (like when you're not in need of a bandage but not quite healed), their recommendations amount to very gentle, light application of moisturizer or serum to the Basically, savvy skincare as usual. and avoidance of fragrant products, which have the potential to irritate. 

The crew at HowStuffWorks suggests to check for warnings like "do not use on broken skin" and recommends plain old petroleum jelly (an ingredient in most topical ointments like Neosporin) for moisturizing a healing wound. There are laser surgeries for scar removal, but if that's overkill, just wait for the scar to fade over time and treat yourself to a nice, regular skin care routine.

Hopefully, if you're here because of a cut, you've now taken care of the problem like an adult. If the accident in question happened in the kitchen, you can brush up on culinary knife skills at Serious Eats (and take your mind off the injury with a little food porn).

Looking for more ways to be an adult? Check out our archive.

1

Defining "profuse" seems to work like the old yarn about pornography — you'll know it when you see it. Say blood is spurting out of the cut, or you start to feel lightheaded after several minutes of applying pressure. Go to the hospital!

2

If you're interested in how H2O2 became so popular in spite of being fairly unremarkable, check out this episode of Sawbones, a medical history podcast.

3

So, should you toss the hydrogen peroxide? If you're blonde, maybe not: this guide from BargainBabe will help you use H2O2 to do cheap, at-home highlights. Be sure to follow all the steps & safety tips!

4

This process is sometimes referred to as "fibrosis," which commonly mean excess formation of fibrous tissue, as with puffy or prominent scars.

<p>Mathew Olson is an Associate Editor at Digg.</p>

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