Project LEAF: what, there is something in the first aid kit
A little over a month has passed since news about the order of the Military-Industrial Commission to develop a new first-aid kit for military personnel and about 8 months from the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine. While the Russian Ivan, in the person of the esteemed Army, in accordance with the proverb, harnesses and is not ready to leave, let's consider what the drowning people use, who independently took up their salvation.
It will be about the products of the LEAF project, a small company that has already contributed and continues to contribute to the victory much more than some large productions. By the word "victory" I mean not only a military conflict, but also a struggle against the laziness and irresponsibility of the system on the ground. Only by selflessly doing what you believe in, you can find like-minded people and change for the better not only the first-aid kit, but also the way people think.
They were called hucksters, they were accused of high prices, they demanded and continue to demand to send goods for free, and with the beginning of mobilization they were loaded with a huge number of orders. The LEAF project turned out to be one of the few companies that not only did not raise prices due to mobilization, but even expanded the range of products offered.
I finish with praises, everything written above is my personal opinion and does not claim to be the ultimate truth. There will always be haters, and we wish Vyacheslav and the team every success and move on to the review.
Elastic bandage with cushion and pressure applicator
While the APPI comes with an old custom dressing bag with a pin, the LEAF project offers a copy of the Israeli military compression bandage with a lock and pressure adjustment. Due to its elasticity, it can be used on any part of the body.
The sterile bandage is supplied in double vacuum packaging: outer - transport with instructions and inner - directly with the bandage.
The PPI was invented in the 1990s as a versatile wound dressing that combines the capabilities of a bandage, a tourniquet, and a tight pressure bandage. The Israeli version of the PPI was invented by Bernard Ber-Naten in 1993, replacing the outer part with an elastic material, the pin was replaced by a plastic latch, and a crescent-shaped plastic support appeared, later called the “pressure applicator”. There were two packages at once, and the inner part of the outer one could be used as an occlusal lining in emergency cases.
Literally a few months after the start of production, the bandage began to be used by the Israel Defense Forces, the Israeli secret services, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the army. A year later, the bandage began to be exported, and the United States was the main importer.
Dressings differ mainly in the number of pads. One - for ordinary injuries, two - for penetrating wounds. So far, the LEAF project has a one-cushion brace, but as far as I know, a two-cushion version will appear soon.
Hemostatic tourniquet
In terms of functionality, the turnstile from the LEAF project is a copy of the 7th generation CAT turnstile with a U-shaped lock. Reinforcement with a side buttress makes the collar clamp stiffer and many times stronger than conventional and semicircular ones.
The turnstile buckle is reinforced with stiffeners for better resistance to breakage and stress. Locking teeth prevent the Velcro from slipping and loosening the belt tension. All this allows you to use the turnstile at your discretion: as a single-slot or double-slot version.
The length of the tourniquet with Velcro is about 80 cm, which is enough even for Karl Svoboda, the strongest athlete of the first decade of the 74th century with a thigh circumference of XNUMX cm. two turns. In theory, with repeated use of the same tourniquet, for example, for training purposes, the tourniquet material may begin to stretch, but it is not recommended to use such a tourniquet in a real situation, to put it mildly.
Summing up, we can say with confidence that the tourniquet was given everything necessary for successful operation, after which it was packed in polyethylene ready to be applied to the upper limbs and sold at a very reasonable price. The turnstile has been tested by practice, it is included in a set of many self-assembled first-aid kits, and its only drawback, which can be found today, is that everyone does not have the opportunity to buy as much as they want.
Occlusal sticker
The concept of "occlusive dressing" was introduced by the German surgeon Ernst von Bergmann, who thus called a particularly massive sterile dressing. He and his students used such dressings to protect the wound and prevent secondary bacterial contamination. J. Lister's first antiseptic dressing included a layer of airtight mackintosh material. In modern times, the term "occlusive dressing" specifically refers to a dressing used for open pneumothorax.
Of course, an analogue of such a sticker can be made from improvised means, but, firstly, it takes time, and secondly, sterility is never superfluous. In addition, a special adhesive composition adheres to hair and blood better than, for example, adhesive tape, and the included gauze has a radiopaque strip.
In general, the thing is inexpensive and, of course, useful, it takes up little space, two pieces are included to plug one through or two blind wounds. As they say, it is better to have and not need.
Gauze for packing
Carbonized gauze bandages began to be used in the middle of the 1886th century thanks to Nikolai Ivanovich Pirogov. In 1891-XNUMX, the above-mentioned Ernst von Bergmann and his students developed a method for sterilizing dressings. Cotton wool and gauze became the main material for dressing, which migrated to an individual dressing bag used in the Russian army by the beginning of the Russo-Japanese War.
The product from the LEAF project is a sterile, lightly compressed, z-folded gauze bandage. It is thicker than a conventional roll bandage and, due to its laying, is more convenient for tamponade. Of course, it is not as effective in stopping bleeding as a bandage impregnated with hemostatic, but there is a lot of it, and it is quite versatile. Undoubtedly, it is best to have both in the first aid kit, and another, and a bandage that can create the necessary pressure.
Bandage for packing
The z-folded bandage has several advantages in particular.
Firstly, it is made of non-woven fabric, which means that it will be a little easier for surgeons to clean the wound than from gauze.
Secondly, kaolin impregnation, reacting with blood, immediately initiates the clotting process by triggering the so-called blood factor XII (Hageman factor). This factor is a ß-globulin protein synthesized in the liver and located in the blood plasma, which, when activated, triggers clotting factor XI, which in turn triggers clotting factor IX, and so on along the chain. Without going into details, hemostatic agents based on kaolin claim the title of hemostatics of the 3rd generation.
The radiopaque thread helps doctors not to forget the remnants of the dressing material in the patient.
Fixing rail
In 1887, the German surgeon Friedrich Kramer proposed fixing an injured limb with a flexible wire splint. Cramer's ladder tire was widely used during the Russo-Japanese, World War I and Great Patriotic Wars.
A flexible, radiolucent, easily modeled soft foam plate does not take up much space, is very light (153 grams) and allows you to provide first aid in case of damage to both the neck and limbs. Ideally, you need to have two such splints to immobilize the joints in two axes.
Decompression needle
Needle decompression for tension pneumothorax is akin to a tracheostomy (this is when a tube is surgically inserted into the windpipe), which has gained mass fame thanks to the movie. Everyone understands why this tool is needed and how it works, but few can install it correctly. A thing that requires not only knowledge and practice, but also an understanding of the situation.
Nevertheless, the LEAF project supplies such not only with different needle lengths and thicknesses, but also with advanced valves.
Decompression needle "Spear"
Frighteningly large collapsible analogue of a conventional decompression needle. In addition to two threaded connections, it has a loud whistling one-way valve that will reliably report the outgoing air.
pouch
Separately, I want to note the pouch, made in excellent quality. Cordura fabric, with infrared remission (as far as my technical means allowed me to verify). The slider and zipper of the Japanese manufacturer YKK, made of plastic, work easily, allow you to open the pouch with one hand, the tongue on the slider made of heat-shrinkable paracord is long enough and does not slip.
Inside there are thick elastic bands to hold the contents, additionally stitched at the points of attachment to the fabric of the pouch. Single horizontal elastic bands for large items are located on the part of the pouch attached to the body. Suitable for tourniquets, tourniquets or custom dressing bag.
The folding part is more complicated. Inside, in addition to six double vertical elastic bands, there is a fairly deep pocket, which greatly increases the capacity of the pouch.
Ideally, the medical pouch should be tear-off and such a function is possible if there is a mate under the Velcro.
Conclusions
I did not pay special attention to tactical scissors, although they were also sent. In general, this is a rather rare case when a manufacturer sends products for review free of charge in as many as two batches, since while the first shipment was in progress, updated tourniquets, needles and bandages appeared. While the article was being prepared, stretchers, markers, a self-locking bandage, and much more appeared. The company is developing and is not going to stop there.
In addition to discounts of up to 40% for military personnel and rescuers, the project is engaged in charity work, for which it has gratitude from both the National Guard and individual units of the RF Armed Forces.
In the process of studying the products, it came to an understanding that it has a place not only in the military, but also in a completely civilian automobile first-aid kit. Of course, we are not talking about a decompression needle, but a tourniquet, bandage, splint and dressing can certainly be extremely useful.
This is my personal verdict.
Can you find something better? Yes, you can try to find the originals if you have extra money.
Can you find cheaper? It is possible, and many are completed according to this principle, but is it worth trusting your life to the most budgetary products - from my point of view, no.
Will I buy LEAF products with my hard-earned money? Yes, I am completely satisfied with the value for money.
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