Disclaimer, I don't have the level of medical knowledge that some of you have on this site. My WFA certification is not anywhere near the level of the paramedics we have here.

That said, in most of the wilderness texts and training I have had, they strongly caution against closing wounds in the field, because of the difficulty in really cleaning/irrigating properly, disinfecting, etc in the field. It seems like after you get any profuse bleeding stopped, the general course in the field is to keep the wound covered, with frequent changes of the dressing to absorb all the goop that's going to ooze out until you can reach more capable medical care. (I think that's one reason why you see 4x4's in high numbers in most decent kits, they are the universal slimy ooze absorber.) Letting things bleed and ooze is ugly, but, it's the body's way of getting all of the little nasty things out of the wound.

Ok, wasn't that a nice thought for Mother's Day! (My house is still all asleep, have to wake up the boy to make mom breakfast in bed soon)

I'd be interested in hearing a response from some of our paramedics about the concept of whether you close a wound in the field, and some of the considerations.