For bleeding control in abdominal or chest trauma, which adjunct is recommended?

• A. Tourniquet
• B. Cold packs
• C. Hemostatic gauze
• D. Elevation only

Answer: (C)

When dealing with bleeding from the abdomen or chest, the goal is to promote clotting in wounds that aren’t easily controlled by simple pressure. A tourniquet won’t help on the trunk, since you can’t wrap a belt-like device around the chest or abdomen to stop the bleed. Cold packs and elevation help with pain, swelling, or minor bleeding, but they don’t stop significant torso hemorrhage. Hemostatic gauze, on the other hand, is designed to accelerate clot formation when packed into a wound, making it effective at controlling bleeding in non-compressible torso injuries. You’d expose and clean the wound, pack the gauze into the wound bed, apply direct pressure to help form a clot, and secure it with a dressing. This makes it the most appropriate adjunct for abdominal or chest trauma among the options.