SUTURE Set

     Having the proper equipment for putting in stitches is imperative for the avid outdoorsman.  From climbing accidents in the back country to slips while offshore fishing, you may often require immediate attention.  Some pieces of your suture set can be dual purpose items.  Notice that I use the scissors on my Leatherman Micra rather than carry a redundant pair.  

    The most important item to have is needle and thread.  I use Ethicon Prolene, made by Johnson & Johnson, which has the thread already attached to the needles.  In order to handle the thread and tie your knots you will need at least two pairs of hemostats but three makes it much easier.  The hardest thing to acquire for the suture set is Lidocaine which is a topical pain medication.  For this I would ask my general practitioner.  Before closing any wound make sure it is completely clean.  A good saline rinse followed by some Betadine is generally acceptable but I go one step farther and rinse the wound out with alcohol.  Do not try this unless you are well numbed or you will try to crawl out of your skin.

   For smaller cuts Super Glue Gel or Krazy Glue Gel works really well.  If you want to get fancy then try some DermaBond.  This is the mac daddy of the quick boo boo repair materials.  Its kind of like duct tape is to a NASCAR team after their car hits the wall. 

suturesetsmall02.jpg (62407 bytes)

SUTURE HOW TO

OR, OOPS I HAD TO PUT IN MY ON STITCHES

CROWDERINC.COM NAVIGATION