A Few Questions About Quickclot Sport

Asavage270 · Nov 13, 2012

Hello, i have a few questions about the Quickclot Sport - Advanced Clotting Sponge. I have picked up about four of these over a span of a few months and have thankfully never had to use them. They have been mainly packed away in my B.O.B and First Aid Trauma Kit.

I have never had the opportunity to open the package of one of these little items. I am curious, (But not curious enough to waste 13$) to take a look at the product.

Anyways, heres my questions.

Has anyone ever used one of these sponges in the application of a penetrating Gun shot wound (GSW)?
would it be effective in stoping the bleeding on the inside of the permanent cavity? Or only surface damage?

this leads me to my second question.

If treating a large/deep permanent cavity of a GSW would one be able to rip/tear/cut open one of these sponges and apply the powder/Zeolite(the stuff the makes quick clot effective) directly to the portion of the wound were bleeding was most prominent?

Are there products out there that are more effective in treating deep GSW's?

When the Sponge is removed does the clot that has formed also generally get torn off with the sponge?

After seeing the violence that unfolds after a catastrophy (such as Sandy, or Tuesday

) I took it upon myself to learn more about treating traumatic low and high velocity penetrating wounds. Just thought i would throw these questions out there so i can better understand the product i have. Any input is much appreciated! Thanks for reading!

safetyman · Nov 13, 2012

I have talked to some coworkers who have experience with products similar to Quicklot and they recommend using a different means to stop bleeding (i.e. direct pressure, turniquette). The reason for this is in order to treat the cause of bleeding, doctors need to have a clean wound to start with and products like Quicklot take a LOT of work to clean out of the wound which results in lost time or a worse wound.

I would not throw the ones you want away...what I would do is use an alternative method to stop the bleeding and if they fail, use the Quicklot.

To be honest, I have zero first-hand experience with using clot-forming patches, just information from others who have.

Nwcid · Nov 13, 2012

First step to stop bleeding is direct pressure. IF you have an extremity wound that is not stopped with direct pressure the next step is to go to tourniquet. This will ALWAYS be more effective then hemostatic agents and in the majority of civilian settings will cause no long term damage to the patient.

For a hemostatic agent to work it has to get to the actual site of the bleeding. Just stuffing a "sponge" in a hole will do no good and can make things worse. The "sponges" were an improvement over the powder that was hard to get to the site and was easily blown around in windy conditions. Really the best product on the market is impregnated bandages that you can actually pack into the wound getting the hemostatic agent where it needs to be.

Tourniquet use and method has changed a whole bunch in the last decade. I would do lots of reading on the new methods and new tools. There is lots of information online including many EMS agencies have their protocols online.

wingmanavy · Nov 13, 2012

Asavage270 said:
Hello, i have a few questions about the Quickclot Sport - Advanced Clotting Sponge. I have picked up about four of these over a span of a few months and have thankfully never had to use them. They have been mainly packed away in my B.O.B and First Aid Trauma Kit.

I have never had the opportunity to open the package of one of these little items. I am curious, (But not curious enough to waste 13$) to take a look at the product.

Anyways, heres my questions.

Has anyone ever used one of these sponges in the application of a penetrating Gun shot wound (GSW)?
would it be effective in stoping the bleeding on the inside of the permanent cavity? Or only surface damage?

this leads me to my second question.

If treating a large/deep permanent cavity of a GSW would one be able to rip/tear/cut open one of these sponges and apply the powder/Zeolite(the stuff the makes quick clot effective) directly to the portion of the wound were bleeding was most prominent?

Are there products out there that are more effective in treating deep GSW's?

When the Sponge is removed does the clot that has formed also generally get torn off with the sponge?

After seeing the violence that unfolds after a catastrophy (such as Sandy, or Tuesday ) I took it upon myself to learn more about treating traumatic low and high velocity penetrating wounds. Just thought i would throw these questions out there so i can better understand the product i have. Any input is much appreciated! Thanks for reading!

I have some fairly significant experience with Quikclot. i'm a Navy Corpsman and a buddy sent me the link to your post figuring I could help.

The "sponge" is more like a beanbag and contains the clotting beads.
For a penetrating, entry-only wound, apply the sponge tot he entry point and apply direct pressure.
Don't remove it at all. Let the doctor do so.
If the bleeding fails to stop, tear open the bag and apply the granules directly into the wound, following with continuous pressure......HARD pressure.....One of the posters is correct. Doctors don't like to debride wounds...However, they would rather have to debride a wound in a live patient then not bother in a dead one....don't worry about debridement....
Other posters have said to try other methods first, and that the granules may not be able to create a clot because the round has been bouncing around inside you...all true, but I always prefer to give it a try with the granules rather than just accept that they won't get to the bleeding source........

As to new products, we're now issued a product called Combat Gauze from the same company. It solves all of the issues with the sponge....imprenated gauze. I'm told that it's only available to first responders and by prescription, but if you know a friendly Doc, you can get a prescription and the company will sell to you...ZMedica - QuikClot® adsorbent hemostatic agent for healthcare providers speeds coagulation & rapidly stops blood loss: Z-Medica Corporation.
Stay safe and stay ready.

Wingmanavy

Sgt Nambu · Nov 13, 2012

Thanks guys, I will definitely read up on this stuff! Nice thread OP!

Asavage270 · Nov 13, 2012

Thanks for all the input! I have read and watched a few tutorials of the Quick Clot Combat Gauze and it definatly seems to be a more effective treatment of GSW's and most other wounds for that matter. I will have to pick some up if i can find a source that allows private sales.

This is mildly off topic from my original questions but does anyone have any links to share about long term treatment of gunshot wounds (From initial wound to completely healed) without the availability of a Doctor or hospital?
How would a surgeon go about treating wounds to the abdomen?

I realize there are massive differences in treating GSW's to different parts of the body, and i have been mainly focusing on the treatment of abdominal wounds since they generally prove to be most lethal/ most difficult to treat.

Somewhat like a TEOTWAWKI scenarios. I imagine after most incidents that cause widespread societal collapse / mass hystaria that waltzing down to a hospital to get treated could prove foolish, that is if it is still operational.

Anyways if this is off topic and should be another thread moderators feel free to let me know and i will gladly repost.

I appreciate all the input and conversation!

Modeler · Nov 14, 2012

At work we use direct pressure, then combat tourniquet, the combat gauze. I've only made it to the tourniquet, but my co-workers who have used the combat gauze say it works well.

For an abdominal GSW a surgeon will generally open up the abdomen, trace the bullet's path and repair any damage; it's all very mechanical and logical, no magic.

As for surviving a GSW without benefit of a doctor, you'll either die or you won't depending on the amount of damage. Seriously, it's all a roll of the dice at that point, and there's nothing you can do about it.

Greg

Modeler · Nov 14, 2012

To put it more succinctly, if you get shot in the chest/abdomen/pelvis and don't go to the hospital you should expect to die.

Greg

Asavage270 · Nov 15, 2012

In the course of studying I found some truely amazing websites offering insite into all types of wounds.
Study this and I assure you that you will feel much more confident in post SHTF medical situations.

this website provides a general how to on most all types of wounds without the care of a medical provider.
this is by the far best website i have found for thoroughly explaining wound treatments to the average fellow.

please check it out and let me know what you think! Definatly some very useful information here.

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