Originally Posted By: eric_2003
Water that is safe to drink usually is no problem at all for irrigating superficial wounds. As for disinfection though, separate from cleaning, you'd need something a bit stronger.


No medical support for that. There is some pretty good evidence that "stronger" stuff will cause tissue injury and result in an increase in infection rates. Good data from major trauma centers speaks to the fact that tap water or safe drinking water is appropriate (even better) than anything else for any wound whatsoever - even deep wounds that require extensive closure or open fractures.

A good reference text for this stuff is Wilderness Medicine by Paul Auerbach (one of the founding fathers of Wilderness Medicine as a discipline):

http://www.amazon.com/Wilderness-Medicin...8247853-3328460