(3) Venous bleeding. In venous bleeding, the blood appears dark red and does not flow in spurts,
but is continuous. Many of the veins are near the surface of the skin, and thus are often
involved in shop injuries, such as lacerations, sharp cuts, and punctures.
(4) Internal bleeding. Less obvious than the various kinds of external bleeding is the internal
hemorrhage, which occurs within the body, such as in a body cavity or organ. Any indication
of blood being coughed up, vomited, or excreted suggests the occurrence of internal
hemorrhage, and the case should be turned over to a physician. Always regard any sign of
internal bleeding as a serious matter calling for professional diagnosis.
c. There are Various Ways of Treating Severe Bleeding. Pressure directly applied against the
wound will stop or slow the bleeding and allow blood to clot. About 5 to 10 minutes will usually suffice.
If a sterile gauze pad or compress is handy, press it against the wound. In an emergency, any clean cloth
will do. The main thing to do is stop or slow the bleeding. Another way to control bleeding is to elevate
the injured part. This lessens blood pressure at the wound site and aids the flow of venous blood from the
area. Thus, arterial or venous bleeding may be reduced or slowed by this method. Another technique is
using certain pressure points (fig. 17) to control arterial bleeding for a short time until more suitable
control can be accomplished by the medical profession. The pressure points are those plates where major
arteries lie near the skin surface. Pressure applied at these points will slow or stop the flow of blood to
certain areas of the body. Manual pressure followed by the pressure of a bandage usually will keep the
bleeding under control. The standard way of manually applying pressure on a pressure point is with the
thumb, because it is the strongest digit. But first, the tip of the forefinger, being sensitive, pinpoints the
precise location of the pressure point by detecting pulse. Now, with the help of figure 17, let's identify
and describe the pressure points.
(1) Carotid. Passing up either side of the neck, the common carotid artery affords a pressure
point situated in the lower part of the neck. The carotid arteries are main blood vessels that
feed blood to the brain and to lingual, facial, temporal, and occipital branch arteries. Pressure
on a carotid artery can stop all blood flow to its side of the head. Since such stoppage could
harm the brain, a first aider should use this pressure point only in the most severe cases of
bleeding in the head or in the neck above this pressure point.
(2) Facial and occipital. The facial artery and the occipital artery in either left or right half of the
head are branches of the carotid. Pressure point for the facial is in a small hollow at the side
of the lower jawbone. If the victim clenches his jaw, you can find it easily by feeling its
pulse just in front of the jaw-clenching muscle. Pressing this point stems bleeding on the side
of the face that is concerned. For bleeding near the middle of the face, you may have to press
both the left and the right facial pressure points simultaneously. The pressure point
associated with the occipital artery is sometimes hard to find, but it is about midway between
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