Combat Medicine

Posted on March 26, 2021 by Brian McLaughlin — Leave a comment

An Extremely Biased Review: The Mountain Man Medical “Mass Casualty Trauma Kit”

Full disclosure: I’m the one that decides what gear should go in our kits. And if it isn’t obvious already, I receive a financial kick back for talking about the MMM kits.

But I’m also confident this is an excellent trauma kit full of top-of-the-line gear and priced better than any comparable kit on the market. I take a lot of pride in the value we offer, and it’s my hope that more trauma gear is placed where it can save more lives.

One of my favorite jobs during my career in the medical field has been teaching trauma classes to organizations looking to be proactive in preparing for a disaster, either natural or manmade.

Posted on March 19, 2021March 23, 2021 by Brian McLaughlin — Leave a comment

Daydreams Helped Me in Combat. The Science:

You might’ve gotten into trouble for it in school, but daydreaming can be great for your survival.

I learned this the hard way as a method of keeping myself present in the rocky hills of Afghanistan. While on patrol with my fireteam, it was easy for my mind to wander back to what must be happening in the normal world instead of focused on the dangers around me.

Posted on March 5, 2021March 19, 2021 by Brian McLaughlin — 2 Comments

How to Pack a Wound in 6 Easy Steps

Last week we discussed why learning to pack a wound is an essential skill for stopping life threatening bleeds. If you haven’t seen it yet, I recommend giving the article a read so you’ll better understand what we’re talking about in this one.

Tourniquets Can’t Fix Everything. Why You MUST Learn Wound Packing

Tourniquets save so many lives due in part to how simple they are to apply. Wound packing is equally simple and arguably just as important as TQs.

Posted on February 28, 2021February 28, 2021 by Brian McLaughlin — Leave a comment

Tourniquets Can’t Fix Everything. Why You MUST Learn Wound Packing

Tourniquets (TQ) have an especially big flaw: They only work on your arms and legs. What if you’re cut somewhere else? What’s your plan for that?

Carrying a CAT for emergencies is great until you trip into a pine tree branch and punch a hole in your neck.

People seem to gravitate to the tourniquet as the only thing they need for bleeding control, but while the TQ is important and effective, you can’t use it to treat other injuries. (Unless we’re talking about the SWAT-T. But I’m staying off that soapbox, for now.)

Here are two good reasons why learning to wound pack is just as important as tourniquet application:

Posted on January 30, 2021January 30, 2021 by Brian McLaughlin — Leave a comment

Come See the Mountain Man Live!

If you've ever had a question you wanted to ask but never had the opportunity, this is you chance to ask some of the most experienced in the field of combat and defensive shooting.

Mountain Man Medical is excited to be invited to the first annual ConcealedCarry.com Guardian Conference! 3 days of live instruction from some of the nation’s top combat and shooting instructors.

Come together with the community of defensive minded shooters and be trained by the best:

Posted on January 1, 2021January 1, 2021 by Brian McLaughlin — Leave a comment

Is a “High and Tight” Tourniquet Wrong?

“If the tourniquet isn’t high and tight, you’re wrong.”

While this isn’t wrong advice, it’s important to understand where this tourniquet procedure came from and why we’re constantly being told to place the TQ as high up on the limb as possible.

Posted on October 23, 2020October 30, 2020 by Brian McLaughlin — Leave a comment

What’s Better? CAT Vs. SOF-T Wide

Trying to decide what the best tourniquet is for you? The Combat Application Tourniquet (CAT) is often viewed as the best device for controlling life-threatening bleeds and is trusted by medical professions all around the world. The SOF-T Wide is also just as trusted, but not quite so widely used. This doesn’t mean it’s inferior.

The CAT has the benefit of being the first to the market and was picked up by the US and British militaries for combat applications and so it enjoys great data supporting its effectiveness.

The SOF-T Wide came onto the scene a short time later, but since it was approved by the Committee on Tactical Combat Casualty Care (CoTCCC) after the CAT, it isn’t as widely recognized, but still deserves your consideration in my opinion.

I have used both TQ’s in real world applications and I have some opinions that might help you decide which is the right TQ for you.

Posted on October 2, 2020 by Brian McLaughlin — Leave a comment

How to Make a Improvised Tourniquet That Will Actually Work

In Part 1 of this little series about Improvised TQs, I talked about why they often don’t work well to control bleeding.

If you haven’t read that article, I suggest going and checking it out before reading this one, so you know the limitations of improvised tourniquets.

But even though they aren’t very trustworthy, knowing how to make your own TQ is a great skill to have and something you should always have floating around in the back of your mind.

Posted on July 29, 2020July 29, 2020 by Brian McLaughlin — 3 Comments

Why the SWAT-T is Good for Civilians, but Not the Military

I know I already touched on this topic a few weeks ago, but I wanted to go a little more in depth on why I believe the SWAT-T is a great back up.

When I became a part of Mountain Man Medical earlier this year, I knew I was about to learn a lot. Not only was I going to brush up on old trauma skills, but I was going to learn about how to publish articles and videos. Being a knuckledragger with a low-level IQ means it’s tenacity that wins the day over speed. Eventually, I’ll learn a new thing if I apply myself.

What I was unprepared for was how many rumors and myths I’ve encountered surrounding basic trauma medicine. The medical world is constantly changing and evolving. New techniques are always being studied, developed, improved on, thrown away, or otherwise changed so something once thought of as the gospel truth, is now widely frowned upon in modern medicine.

Posted on July 22, 2020August 6, 2020 by Brian McLaughlin — 24 Comments

How Long Can You Leave A Tourniquet Before Amputation?

Tourniquets are a frequent topic of discussion on the Mountain Man Medical YouTube channel and I’ve been seeing a lot of rumors. Most of these rumors come from the old ways of doing things.

All medicine is constantly changing, year to year and sometimes month to month as scientists and doctors search for the best way to keep a person alive, and trauma is no exception.

If you haven’t had any medical training for a few years you might not be up to date on the latest techniques for managing trauma. One of the most common myths I see pop up is this:

“Tourniquets are a last resort. If you apply a TQ, the victims injured limb will be amputated.”

Not only is this wrong, but it’s very dangerous.