Very good thread on stuff that knife and saw users should know.

Is this kind of thing covered in any Red Cross First Aid course?

In Band of Brothers, it was mentioned that, if the the femoral
artery was cut, it could withdraw, all the way into the pelvic
area, where normal medics could not stop the bleeding.
Does anyone know if this is really rare, given that the artery
was cut?
Could an EMT, medic, nurse etc even tell it happened?

"...Could an EMT, medic, nurse etc even tell it happened..."

I have seen a couple of severed arteries, but never a femoral, so I am just guessing here. One would be able to tell that the artery was cut from the volume and type of blood. As far as it retracting, I just don't know. Not much an EMT, etc could do about it anyway, other than pack on dressings and pressure...

If you cut your femoral, you're pretty well hosed, just like the carotid. It is a high pressure pipe as big as you thumb. People have survived it, but they've been awfully lucky.

Actually, the only information I've seen relavent to Quikclot or the like is on this situation. I was shown a video where they severed the femoral artery of an anethesized pig. They let it bleed for a few moments to get a really good flow going then dumped Quikclot into the wound and applied pressure. After several minutes of pressure they rinsed away the excess Quikclot and low and behold the wound had stopped bleeding. I was impressived by the performance.

I don't know if I like the idea of using the stuff if I don't have to, but the same is true of a tourniquet. For dire situations, this is something I'd want on hand (although I don't have any currently). Also, while the mixture of Quikclot and water may have heated up substancially, I don't think it was 300-400 degrees, keep in mind water boils at 212 F. MRE heaters get hot enough you can barely hold the corners, but you can still pretty well eat the meal inside right after you take it out. The stuffs meant for life threatening injures. Given the choice between losing a limb to a tourniquet or bleeding out, I'd rather lose a limb. Given the choice between being scalded and bleeding out, I'll take the scald.

Me too. I have a couple tubes of the squirt in stuff Quikclot, keep it around just in case I give myself a REALLY BAD cut when we are off boondocking someplace. One of those life and death things. And yes, losing a limb is better than death, trouble is that many folks (hopefully not many here) get their first aid training from Hollywood, and might slap a tourniquet on a relatively minor cut. Kind of like sewing yourself shut just like Rambo...

Celox blood stopping powder doesn't release any heat when applied.

hmmm! For people who go way back into the woods (guides, hunters, survival instructors, etc.) this seems like a no brainer. Wilderness first responder is far different than that of urban first responder. In the wilderness help may not be a phone call away(no cell phone coverage). You might be back quite a few miles, and extraction may not be immediate. Guess what, protocol is different and you better stop that bleeding right damn now!

when I'm out guiding, I'm the first responder. And I sure as hell don't want someone bleeding out because help is not an option.

I will take whatever help I can get; however, it better be safe to use.

Alan Halcon

Check out Celox...looks likes a great clotting agent. Her's a couple of links about it:

http://www.celoxmedical.com/info.htm

http://www.beyondbulbs.com/Celox-A-Granular-Hemostat-pr-177.html?gclid=CLHJnbOI140CFQlQWAod-we5mQ

A couple of years ago I was fishing in the boonies when I slipped on a slick rock and cut an artery in my knee. The flow of blood impressed me. I had a good 1st aid kit in my truck that had an Ace bandage and several gauze pads included. No matter how tight the Ace was wrapped the bleeding would not even slow. I tried using a tourniquet around my thigh but never successfully stopped the bleeding.

Fortunately it was a small enough artery that I made it to an ER where the Doc. had to open up the wound so he could get a hemostat on the artery.

Bottom line: If you cut a major artery you are probably toast. JMHO