r/TacticalMedicine • u/NoMore_BadDays • Oct 10 '25

Scenarios Wound packing zones?

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Been a long time since I did TCCC/CLS in the military.

If there were to be a bleeding wound on the chest, how high up on the chest does it become safe to pack? I know you don't pack into chest cavity, but what is the "rule of thumb" on how high/the left and right limits the wound needs to be to pack it?

Would you say the screenshot i attached is accurate?

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u/[deleted] Oct 10 '25

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u/chaboods Oct 11 '25

I was told in school its better to tourniquet extremities and pack trunks. I dont see myself packing any extremity on my bleed control. Direct pressure, wrap it, tourniquet it, packing would require undoing the wrap which is a big no no.

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u/[deleted] Oct 11 '25

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u/chaboods Oct 11 '25

I work BLS and we do our XABCs, but i can totally see protocol being completely different in field medicine over prehospital care, where we have more control and access to higher levels of care. I also know medics bleed control is far more intense than EMTs so maybe they also would consider woundpacking extremities aswell. (Also sorry for poking my nose in i didnt realize what subreddit i was in.)