IV.

Severe Bleeding

The presence of blood over a considerable area of a person’s body does not always indicate severe bleeding. The blood may ooze from multiple small wounds or be smeared, giving the appearance of more blood than is actually present. The rate at which blood is lost from a wound depends on the size and kind of blood vessel ruptured. Bright red, spurting blood indicates injury to an artery while welling or steadily flowing, dark red blood indicates injury to a vein.

Welling or spurting blood is an unmistakable sign of severe bleeding. If a major artery ruptures, a person may bleed to death within a minute. Injuries to veins and minor arteries bleed more slowly but may also be fatal if left unattended. Shock usually results from loss of fluids, such as blood, and must be prevented as soon as the loss of blood has been stopped.

To stop the bleeding, apply pressure directly over the wound and, when possible, elevate the bleeding body part. The first-aid provider should use bandages to hold a sterile dressing or clean cloth firmly over the wound. Dressings that become saturated with blood should not be removed but should be reinforced with additional layers. If an arm or leg wound bleeds rapidly and cannot be controlled by dressings and bandages, the first-aid provider can apply pressure to the artery at a point adjacent to the bleed called the pressure point. Arteries pass close to the skin at these points and can be compressed against underlying bone to stop arterial bleeding. The pressure point for the femoral artery, which supplies blood to the leg, is located on the front center of the leg’s hinge, the crease of the groin area where the artery crosses the pelvic bone. The pressure point for the brachial artery, which supplies blood to the arm, is located halfway between the elbow and armpit on the inner side of the arm.