First-aid products treat the cuts and scrapes of summer

Key Points

Bumps, bruises, and scrapes happen - especially during the summer months when knees and elbows are bare and so much time is spent outdoors. Many first-aid products can help.

Two pain-relieving sprays from Prestige Brands have been given a new look – Dermoplast Pain Relieving Antibacterial Spray (red can for first-aid uses when infection is a concern, such as with cuts and scrapes) and Dermoplast Pain Relieving Spray for Burn and Itch (blue can). The blue can is great for sunburn, too. Both products provide fast relief of pain and itch.

Prestige's Little Remedies line has introduced Little Ouchies, a medicated spray for kids 2 years old and up. Little Ouchies provides temporary relief of pain and itching associated with sunburn, insect bites, minor cuts, scrapes, minor burns, and minor skin irritations. The active ingredient is benzocaine.

Calendula officinalis is also known as the garden marigold. With bactericidal and antiseptic properties, its flowers have been used topically for generations to speed the healing of small wounds, cuts, sunburns, chafing, rashes, or irritations. Boiron offers homeopathic healing and moisturizing agents in several formulations: Calendula Ointment for wound protection, nongreasy Calendula Gel for quicker absorption, Calendula Cream for sensitive skin, and water-based Calendula Lotion, which covers large surfaces easily.

Gold Bond Intensive Healing Cream from Chattem offers 7 healing moisturizers plus aloe to provide relief to both the patient who needs acute first-aid care and the chronic sufferer of extremely dry, itchy skin.

Tender Corp.'s Adventure Medical Kits recently introduced QuikClot Sport and QuikClot Silver, sponges made of porous fabric that contain tiny beads of the mineral Zolite.

QuikClot's action is like that of a molecular sieve, sifting molecules according to size. When QuikClot comes into contact with blood from a wound, it rapidly absorbs smaller water molecules from the blood. Only the larger platelet and clotting factor molecules remain in the wound, and they do so in a form that is highly concentrated. Because this process promotes extremely rapid natural clotting, it helps prevent the severe loss of blood.

In addition, QuikClot Sport Silver contains ionic silver, which fights fungi and bacterial growth. Also now available is QuikClot Home, in the perfect size for scalp lacerations or bleeding, when a bandage is not enough.

Dana K. Cassell, a frequent contributor to Drug Topics, lives in North Stratford, N.H.