Month: August 2017

Skeletal injuries can be classified as sprain, strain, dislocation and fracture. Adequate treatment given at the time of injury is very important in good anatomical repair and functional recovery. If it is not given, it may lead to further injury, shock and permanent disabilities, Sprain and strain are joint injuries in which there is no displacement of joint surfaces. In a dislocation there is displacement of bones at the joint. A fracture is partial or complete break in the continuity of a bone (periosteum).

Continue reading First-Aid: Causes of Skeletal Injuries and Types of Fracture

FRACTURE OF COLLARBONE

The clavicle fractures due to fall on the outstretched hand or on the tip of the shoulder. It is diagnosed by the presence of the following features.

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FRACTURE OF THE FOREARM AND WRIST

Radius and ulna, the bones of the forearm may be fractured across their shafts by a heavy blow. These fractures are often compound because the bones have little fleshy covering. The commonest fracture around the wrist is a Colles’ fracture, usually caused by a fall on the outstretched hand. It produces dinner fork deformity of the forearm and hand.

Continue reading First-Aid: Fracture of Forearm and Wrist, Hand and Fingers and Fracture of Rib

FRACTURE OF THIGH BONE

Fractures of the neck of the thigh bone (femur) at the hip joint are common in the elderly women, whose bones become more brittle after menopause. A fracture of the shaft of the femur develops due to severe force e.g. road accidents, or falls from heights.

Continue reading First-Aid: Fracture of the Thigh Bone Knee Joint. Knee Cap and Leg Bones

FRACTURE OF SPINE

The spine (vertebral column) is made up of a number of small bones called a vertebrae arranged one above another. The spine is supported by many strong ligaments and the muscles of the trunk. It protects the spinal cord contained within it. The spinal cord is delicate and if damaged, loss of sensation or power can occur in parts of the body below the injured area, e.g. upper limbs, lower limbs. Permanent damage will result if the cord is partially or completely transected.

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DISLOCATION

This is a more severe injury than a sprain. It occurs when a strong force acts directly or indirectly on a joint pulling a bone into an abnormal position. It can occur as a result of sudden muscular contraction too. There is displacement of one or more bones at a joint. There is also tearing of ligaments, joint capsule, and tissues around the joint. Shoulder and hip joints are commonly involved in adults, while elbow, finger, and lower jaw joints are more commonly involved in children. The condition is diagnosed by the following features.

Continue reading First-Aid: First Aid for Dislocation of Shoulder, Back Sprain and Prolapsed Inter Vertebral Disc ( Slipped Disc)

□ FRACTURE OF THE BONES OF THE FOOT

This is due to direct crushing by heavy objects. The condition is diagnosed by the following features.

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This section is particularly useful for the person at home who may not have a handy first-aid kit and wants to give immediate succor and help to a person in distress, since medical aid is not always within reach. To begin with the basic. The first requirement is clean water, whether for drinking, cooking or other domestic purposes. In villages, and often in city homes too, the water we get is not always clean or chlorinated, or at times is downright muddy. The age-old remedy for purifying water was to collect it in a clean container, filtering it through a muslin cloth. The container was often and still is of a particular shape — the ghara.

Continue reading First-Aid: Emergency Medical Aid from Your Kitchen Shelf and Garden for Pain/flatulence/indigestion, etc., Nausea and Vomitnig

FOREIGN BODIES IN THE SKIN

Small foreign bodies like shards of glass and wood splinters usually cause small puncture wounds with little or no bleeding. But they are quite painful. Hence they have to be removed early. If a portion of the foreign body is found to be sticking out of the skin, it can be grasped with nails or a small forceps and pulled out. If it is deeply embedded in a wound, attempts at its removal may drive it deeper into the tissues. Such patients should be sent to a doctor. Foreign bodies are often contaminated with dirt and can cause infections including tetanus.

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□ ARTHRITIS

• Fresh celery : A cup of juice a day is good for arthritis. Celery soups and salads also have a beneficial effect.
• Foods : Celery, parsley, bitter gourd, beetroot, asparagus, yeast, wheat germs.
• Fruits : Banana, pecan, grapes, raisins, cherry, strawberry, guava and musk melon.

Continue reading First-Aid: Emergency Medical Aid from Your Kitchen Shelf and Garden for Arthritis, Painful Swelling of Joints and Wounds