#The word tourniquet is redundant with most of these names

[bobwess]

It feels like you want to do torniqets

The leading cause of the preventable deaths in an emergency is uncontrolled bleeding.

Tourniquets can be used on limbs (arms/legs) and are for uncontrolled arterial bleeds. That's your bright red pulsing and spurting blood.

Uncontrolled bleeding is the first thing you will address after being sure there is no danger. It is important to stop that blood before you do anything else. Once you get the tourniquet on, you must write the time you applied the tourniquet on it or on the body part next to it in permanent marker. You must also write a "T" on the forehead, so if the limb is covered by blankets, emergency personnel know there is a clock on it.

Choosing your tourniquet:

There are 5 main kinds of Tourniquets, each with their pros/cons.

The most common and well liked tourniquet is the CAT (specifically the Gen 7) It's designed for the military, it is straightforward and easy to apply, it works well every time, and it can be done to yourself if needed. It will get the job done. Love it. My recommendation.

Then you have the Sof-T. It's a lot like the CAT but worse. (Fight me.) It looks nicer but it's less practical and slightly more expensive.

RATs is another one. This one isn't at all like the CAT, it instead is more of a elastic band material that you loop through an end piece to lock it off. The RATs is a little bit cheaper, around $20 The RATs will cause more nerve damage and pain though, because it is pinching it off with a much narrower band. However, because it doesn't have a huge stiff plastic windlass and locking mechanism, it's incredibly flexible and much more comfortable and practical to have in the pocket or a purse than carrying a CAT.

SWAT-T is another type. It's like an exercise elastic band and the instructions on how to use are printed right on the side. It's not easy to use. I don't think this tourniquet is worth your time.

The STAT is the last kind. This is your set it and forget it. It can be a little harder to get full tension on it, I still far prefer the CAT, but this goes on like a zip tie. You slide it on, pull it tight, and press the button. It automatically records the time itself, you'll just have to put a T on their forehead. (Write it in blood if you gotta.) The easiest of all the options for sure. If you want a tourniquet, don't really want to learn how to use one or the others are intimidating, it's a pretty good choice to throw in a first aid kit, backpack, or glove compartment.

NEVER get your tourniquets off Amazon, there are a LOT of counterfeit tourniquets on Amazon, and a counterfeit one will not have the right materials to hold pressure. North American Rescue is where I get my tourniquets, but there are a couple reputable medical supply companies. My Medic is a good site.

Normal belts can not be used as emergency medical tourniquets. I don't care what the movies told you. Drugs? Maybe. Stop the bleed? No.

I'm not going to get into what to use for a makeshift tourniquet, but you can find a tutorial online. It just won't be as effective, fast, or easy as a proper one is.

I personally carry a RATS tourniquet in my pocket at all times and have a CAT tourniquet on the passenger sun visor of my car.

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Practice with whatever brand of tourniquet you are getting. And look up the best way of storing it to grab it and deploy it easier.

You will know the Tourniquet is tight enough because all blood flow to the limb will stop. There will be no more blood escaping the wound. Once blood flow is entirely stopped, the limb is actively dying. There is a limit to how long the limb can go without bloodflow in which the doctors can save the limb, otherwise the limb will be amputated at the tourniquet line.

Wwith modern technologies, it is hours before the limb is a gonner.

The military goes "high and tight" meaning whatever limb needs a tourniquet, they strap that thing on as high on the limb (close to the heart) as possible, fast easy mindless because they have a support team that is likely to get this person back to medical before anything happens.

If you don't know when your extraction will be (how soon you'll get medical attention) it's usually recommended you put the tourniquet roughly 3 inches above the wound (making sure you don't apply it to a joint like the elbow or knee).

Be warned, the tourniquet quickly becomes the most painful part of their body as it is crushing the nerves. They're gonna want to rip it off, you have to keep them from pawing at it and potentially undoing it.

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I recommend getting a bright color tourniquet. Black is fine if it's what you have, and it can look cool, but you want people to see the applied tourniquet as easily as possible and bright flashy colors are the move for that. Attach a sharpie to your tourniquet! Just take a sharpie, put it in the case with the tourniquet or just in the same place. You'll want to be able to write the time and the T and it's easier if they're together.