What's in your first aid kit?

“I carry a smal first aid kit which includes:

iodine tablets for water
assorted small bandages
first aid/disinfectant/burn creme
ace bandage
guaze pads
needle and thread
iodine wipes
mole skin
a couple of loratabs
emergency space blanket

Just curious what others pack and if I'm leaving out anything important.”

“I have sinus pills, extra breathe-rites, (I need them to sleep) a cold pack in addition to what you mentioned.”

“imodium ad, a goo pack, lighter or matches, scissors. Cortizone cream.”

“cortizone is a good one, I have small scissors on my leatherman knife.

What's a goo pack?”

“Ibuprofin, Alleve, AOL CD (signal mirror), space blanket, pocket first aid book, immodium, super glue (great wound closure), vivarin, needle/thread, snake bite kit (no cutting),ace bandage, bacitracin,(& other antibiotics) butterfly strips (stitches) gauze bandage, ace bandage, 2nd skin, moleskin, bandaids, tape, iodine & alcohol pads,towlettes. The only thing that I've used in many, many years of hiking is Advil. Works great for my knees. Whenever I ask MD's this question, most say "soap&water".”

“goo is a liquid/gel energy pack. Eat it and you have 110 calories, and some cafeine. It's just alittle extra fuel.

Also carry an empty syringe for cleaning wounds. Tweezers, and lots of advil. =)

Have you ever tried cutting moleskin with those swiss army knife scissors? Impossible if you have the thick stuff.”

“Aleve is a wonder drug!”

“A tourniquet for head wounds.”

“That's very effective when the wound that's spilling forth is the one that food goes into...”

“first aid kit consists of

advil
ductape”

“Oh in addition to the normal stuff I bring Tylenol PM, helps me sleep better instead of waking up at every sound.”

“First aid stuff, mostly.”

“In the past I did not carry a first aid kit other than 1-2 banades, and some ductape.

After Devils path, an ace bandage and advil will be added.

I hardly ever carried a kit, with the belife that if I can't fix the problem with ductape, than nothing one of the huge med kits have would help either. Now I will still oporate under the same premiss, just with advil and an ace bandage.”

“Along with some items already mentioned I carry Zantac for heartburn, mini magnifing glass, extra boot lace or two, that hand gel stuff, mercurchrome(sp), Neosporin, eye irrigating solution, one unmentionable for those cravings/ice breakers, chap stick, matches, extra batteries for camera or headlamp. Some Antibotics and Benadryl, Vitamins and countless other little items that rarly get used but a packed for the heck of it.”

“like the extra boot lace idea,
I carry benydrl for those nites I just can't seem to rest and some ibupophen... most of the stuff mention I do have ...but the goo..hmm haven't tried it yet
rox”

“Flexorils”

“Superglue.”

“jello”

“The generic of Aleve is Naproxen sodium. The generic is MUCH cheaper than the name brand.”

“Duct tape, a pill bottle with a rubber tourniquet around it, containing maybe 6 aspirin, two Rolaids, two decongestants, and 4 to 6 heavy painkillers, either T3's , Vicodens, Lorcets, Darvocets or Demerol, a plastic baggie to poke a hole in for irrigation, two military roll bandages, an ace bandage, a couple bandaids, and a tiny tube of Neosporin.

If I'm going up high, I'll add Chapstick and a tube of SPF 50 sunscreen.”

“I also pack those butterfly wound closers although I imagine you could slice duct-tape to improvise.

Iodine tablets are great - they do double duty as emergency water disinfectant and wound disinfectant (in very concentrated solution)”

“Duct tape and a hammer.”

“You guys carry a first aid kit?”

“A real hot nurse.”

“Be careful with the super glue (I carry it also), if the wound is really deep it will continue to bleed on the inside. Cutting the swollen wound back open is the pits. A large bandage is better. Also, I carry a sanitary napkin as a wound dressing.”

“#&%!$ stoppers....always carry those. Also ace bandage and duct tape. Other then that I bought a small first aid kit and just added those.”

“super glue is great as liquid stiches but how can you be sure that your cut is clean and infection free before sealing it up? It's awfully difficult in the backcountry. It would be disasterous to seal an infection in. Steri strips work great to hold a wound closed, yet let out undesirable things.Iodine, Steri strip, neopsporine and a gauze bandage over top. (This is what I got in response to the question, "so how should I have handled this in the backcountry....would superglue have been a good idea?" when I was at the dr's yesterday getting repaired) I seriously asked him about super glue.

And sanitary napkins are way too absorbant for wounds. They'll suck the blood right out of you! Ask your doctor.”

“What is that "icebreaker" thing, Briar Rabbit? And Free, what "stopper??"”

“you know lizs - #&%!$ stoppers - imodium for example

got no real idea about the icebreaker thing unless BR is referring to the temporary water carrying device known as a condom”

“corks...another example :)”

“well...after watching that guy from Utah for the past few weeks-- small hacksaw for freeing my arm, painkillers, cell phone”

“loperamide
ibuprofen
gauze
tape
bactine
ductape
blister blocks (gel thingys)
matches
vitamins
steri-strips
bandanna”

“I now carry a full service first aid kit...got everything in it, including sutchers and stuff...I could perform open heart surgery...I wanna do that heart rub thing...and I keep a swiss army knife in my pocket now...the one with the wicked saw blade...never know when you'll need to cut off an arm...my multi tool stays on the pack and if that is out of reach when I get caught under a boulder, It will be useless, cause Im not chewin my arm off. and yeah...them stopper things too!!! what are you trying to stop, upward swimmers or the downward flow?”

“I am going to be beefing up my first aid kit for S.A. I always carry a pretty substantial kit but will be increasing the amount of gauze, medical tape (prefer the waterproof kind by J&J), various sized bandages, Bacitracin, etc. Not to mention Cipro, Tetracycline, Melfloquine (malaria) and a bunch of other over-the-counter drugs including my faves: ibuprofen and sudafed.

A good pair of tweesers I have found to be very helpful (I tend to get splinters somehow), along with a small dropper of Visine to wash out bugs, dirt, etc. from one's eye.

I expect my first aid kit to gain at least a pound...”

“Thanks, Sass.”

“ibuprofen and sudafed are fav drugs?”

“loperamide is the preferred drug here. I live at sea level. Any elevation gain over 2000' sets off my guts for a day or two.”