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Taping cuts together?

I would like to know what would be good to use to help stick steri-strips/butterfly bandages. I had a cut on my finger and tried to use them to hold the cut together, but the adhesive is not strong enough. Would be interested in what would work to help them stick better. I tried krazy glue, but didn't work (tried to glue the butterfly bandage to a piece of electrical tape for a test). So what do you use to hold cuts together?

Thanks
 
You could just forgo the butterflies and just use the super glue. Squeeze the cut together and apply a thin layer of glue, and wait 3 minutes until it dries.
 
What Josh said, that's what cynoacrylate was originally developed for. Then they noticed it stuck most anything to anything.
 
I've used crazy glue to close quite a few cuts over the years with great sucess. Its kept me out of the ER more then once.
 
We don't use regular crazy glue to close cuts. The glue is modified to be more pliable and have a slower drying time. The would would also have to be sterile prior to application of glue otherwise infection is likely. To keep the steristrips sticking use something like Mastisol.

Aaron
 
What Josh said, that's what cynoacrylate was originally developed for. Then they noticed it stuck most anything to anything.

Urban legend.

It was actually developed during WWII as an alternative for making gun sights.
It was abandoned because it stuck to everything.
Eastman "rediscovered" it in the 50s for a number of applications, and it was used without formal authorization by some Vietnam field units.
The FDA did not approve it for medical use until the mid 1990s (Dermabond).
 
This made me laugh. I have been a longshoreman for the last 8 years or so. Cuts are a pretty regular occurrence in the field. We always keep a roll of duct tape around. Dump a l little alcohol on it and tape it up. Works well enough. The longshoreman bandaid!
 
This made me laugh. I have been a longshoreman for the last 8 years or so. Cuts are a pretty regular occurrence in the field. We always keep a roll of duct tape around. Dump a l little alcohol on it and tape it up. Works well enough. The longshoreman bandaid!


Now that made me laugh. I guess duct tape really does fix everything.
 
The best thing I have found to work are the cloth band-aids mad for knuckles. They are shaped to work great on hands, and the expensive cloth ones stick so well I can wear them all day at work doing construction, and actually have to peel them off in the shower at the end of the day. They never fall off. That or electrical tape in a pinch.
 

Legion

Staff member
I've glued a few cuts. Detol to clean the wound (Undiluted, stings like a @#%$#@#, but it will kill all the bugs), Close the cut and glue. I'm sure it is not really good for you, CA in the blood stream, but I don't go to the doc if there is any reasonable alternative. Leaves more of a scar than sutures, but is a lot less Rambo than trying to stitch yourself up with moms sewing kit.
 
Not a doctor! But when I was a bookseller, our papercut cure was alcohol followed by a loud vulgarity, followed by superglue. And geez, we got a lot of them unpacking boxes of books.
 

Slash McCoy

I freehand dog rockets
I don't know if it is "good for you" or not, but the fact is, superglue will glue cuts just fine, and I have never heard of anyone even getting a teensy bit sick from using it. Obviously you are gonna go the the emergency room for a really major cut, anyway, and it seems to do no harm with relatively minor ones that might at most take three or four stitches.

Just remember, I am not a doctor and my medical opinion is worth exactly what you paid for it.
 
Medical person here. Superglue is great, but I would still use a bandage on a significantly cut fingertip, since glue can come apart with repeated washing. To answer the OP's question, tincture of benzoin is used in all hospitals to help adhesives stick. Apply a thin coating to the skin where the tape will be, and let it dry for a minute before applying the bandage. It works very well. You can find it in pharmacies.
 
Thanks for the replies. I have tried Krazy glue on a couple of small cuts. Seems to work OK, but it comes loose sometimes, maybe from getting it wet or putting too much on I guess.
 
(another medical person here) for those of you pouring alcohol on your wounds, a) it stings and b) its waaaay overkill....5 minutes of running water will decrease the colony count of the bacteria, soap and water would be the most you would need followed by a good flushing with somewhat (but not too) force full tap water..its been studied, even before applying stitches (sutures) in the ER...

+1 on the tincture of benzoin...+1 on the history of cyanoacrylate

and crazy/superglue will not hold well on the fingertips, just fyi...

and dont use it near your eyes!

and Vaseline/petrolatum based products will immediately dissolve the glue...think bacitracin or neosporin aka triple antibiotic
 
(Not a medical person here) I don't think the comment about not using super glue or needing to sterilize it was saying super glue is "bad." But if you have used your super glue on some work you did and stuck it into weird crevices the tip of your super glue may be contaminated and putting that into the cut is probably not advisable although I am just taking a guess here. Usually those bottles (or whatever it's in) have to be prevented from being contaminated or it is not recommended to use in open cuts.
 
Anybody ever use this stuff? http://uncrate.com/stuff/jack-black-mr-fix-it-antimicrobial-wound-rescue/

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Avoid infection, disease, and boils with Jack Black Mr. Fix It Antimicrobial Wound Rescue ($20). This petrolatum-free antimicrobial gel employs the benefits of silver to quickly absorb into and help heal scrapes, cuts, and burns, and halt the growth of MRSA, E coli, staphylococcus, and other nasty germs and bacteria.
 
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