Eggs as a Bandage: Prepper First Aid

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“Ancient Chinese Medicine huh?”  Sorry couldn’t help but put that old one in given the context of the article!

Okay so 4 Taiwanese doctors presented this study at the 3rd Asian-Pacific Burns Conference in Taipei, Taiwan.  In the study they put Egg membranes head to head with the common burn/skin graft wound care products currently used on the market, what they found was, surprisingly that the lowly egg membrane actually worked better in most cases!

They measured the different products in two categories, Reepithelialization (healing) and COMPLETE pain relief

Biobrane= Healing in 14 days, pain relief in 6

B.G.C = Healing in 14.5 days, pain relief in 7

Surgilon = Healing in 16 days , pain relief in 10

Egg Membrane = Healing in 11.6 days, pain relief in 7.3

Overall the Egg won out, it healed the wound in 2.4 or more days faster than the others and was only a day plus later for complete pain relief.  So what does this mean for preppers?

Well it doesn’t mean throw away your first aid kit and don’t buy bandages and gauze!  It means you now have a proven technique to use for burn treatments and has scientific backing to its validity.

However there are a few concerns that come along with this realization…In the study the egg membranes were irradiated with gamma radiation to kill any bacteria that could be in them.  Salmonella is a MAJOR concern when dealing with chickens, and you could potentially do more damage to the patient by using unsafe, or infected egg membranes.  To stop Salmonella from being present in your flock a few things can be done.

• If you so choose you can vaccinate your chickens against salmonella, this has been proven to work pretty well, however this is something you will have to figure out yourself, the world of vaccination is a very…..problematic one.
• Keep you chickens coops clean, the area they live in clean and this will help stop the spread of diseases.
• Limit the contact of your chickens to other people/visitors and especially other birds such as pigeons, ducks, etc.
• Quarantine a sick chicken IMMEDIATELY, this can help stop the spread of disease to the rest of your flock
• Rodent Control, Salmonella is usually spread by visitors, and that includes rodents, so rodent proof the area, keep animals and traps on site that kill them, and keep the chickens feed in sealed containers, if the chickens feed outside, bring the food in at night to keep rodents from flocking to the area.
• Salmonella is pretty resilient and can live a long life, so even trucks or bottoms of boots can carry the bacteria to new places, namely your coop!
• Collect eggs often and store immediately and keep the nesting areas clean and fresh.

Personally I would only use this if no other option is available, However this is better than having NO option.

For this to be used we are talking major burn wounds, not a small burn on a finger that could be treated with aloe (side note, get aloe plants in your house now! they are easy to take care of and thrive pretty decently indoors!) This is for major burn wounds that would normally need hospital attention.

As with all major burn wounds, infection is the biggest enemy, so keeping the area where the person is recovering clean is paramount, as well as the person treating them, you need to STAY CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN! I cant reiterate that enough.  Use alcohol to keep your hands and instruments clean, wash bedsheets in boiling water daily as well as any clothes that person wears.  Then i would flush the wound with sterile water, Do not use alcohol on a burn wound, or hydrogen peroxide they inhibit new tissue growth.

Honey has also been used on burn sites with some effectiveness, and overall wound care as well.  The issue with honey for medical use is that it can contain botulism, which is fine for eating unless its an infant, but can be dangerous if put on an open wound.  There are medical honey products out on the market, and have been irradiated to kill bacteria that could cause issues, regular honey is better than nothing in a pinch, but you should still be aware of the dangers.  I am not a doctor nor a medical professional, so this is all at your own risk of course.

The original article i read about this on was on lifehacker.com, which has some neat stuff

The original article of the study can be found here on the National Institute of Health website, or you can just download it by clicking the link  Taiwan Egg membrane burn study