Accidents are part of our lives. Some of these may be serious enough to require specialized medical treatment and some others not so serious. Grazes on the knees from a fall in the play ground, cuts from a broken glass, bruises on the skin due to friction, and small burn on the body from touching hot objects are minor injuries. These can be treated at home itself. The treatment of such minor injuries at home is called First Aid.
Our body has a remarkable ability to repair such minor injuries. So specialized treatment is not required for them. The most important rules in First Aid are to be sure that the victim is out of further harm and to keep him clean, calm, and resting. Modern antiseptic adhesive dressings are available which can be applied to almost any part of the body to provide protection during early stages of healing.
Following are the methods of First Aid which can be used for cuts, grazes, bruises, burns and scalds.
Cuts: Minor cuts may be caused by knives, broken glass or razor blades etc. Cuts damage blood vessels in the skin and cause bleeding. But this need not cause alarm. Small cuts should be covered with lint and a bandage by fixing it at the wound. After a day the lint and bandage may be removed and replaced with a neat adhesive dressing.
Grazes: Falls on the knees or hand on a rough surface can rub off the outer layers of the skin. This type of injury is called a graze or abrasion in this case wound should be cleaned first with hydrogen peroxide on cotton wool or with water containing a little antiseptic. After cleaning, grazes can be left open to the air. But in case of bleeding, it is advisable to apply lint and a bandage for a day or two.
Bruises: Bruises are injuries in which the tissues are damaged but the skin is not affected. They do not need any treatment.
Burns and scalds: Mild burns and scalds merely cause reddenning of the skin. More serious ones cause blisters and severe ones destroy the tissues completely. When the skin is merely reddened no treatment is required. In case of blisters, an adhesive dressing should be applied. After about a week the top of the blister would fall away leaving new skin underneath.
Chapped hands: Cold, raw weather sometimes makes the skin of the hands rough and sore. This condition can be cured quite easily by rubbing in a little zinc and castor oil cream each night.
In case of cuts and grazes it is advisable to have the anti-tetanus injection. This is because the bacteria may be with the rusted items or on the road and cause serious infection.
We should keep a First Aid kit at home filled with bandages, dressing salves and scissors including some common medicines to meet emergency needs.