Two types of cyclist

[azzurribike]

Ok so we all know there are two types of cyclist those who have fallen off there bike and those who are about to fall. I've recently joined the former group and welcome some advice on handling the severe grazing down my left side hip and elbow. I have reason to wince even more when I see the pro riders fall and slide along the Tarmac cause now I know what it's lke

[goneriding]

I find keeping the graze wet (i.e. antiseptic cream) and use the telfa pads. It takes a bit longer to heal but doesn't leave a big scab.

[jules21]

i tend to follow the HTFU school of wound treatment, but i have lots of scars now so arguably that isn't as smart as i thought it was.

[Percrime]

Sigh.
OK this is how it goes. First ALL the dirt has to come out. Your best bet for this is a bath.. dettol and cotton buds. (I am assuming serious grazing here.. if you have just lost a bit of skin then harden up)

Then when its ALL CLEAN. however long it takes. And resort to steel wool if all else fails. I recently had a bit of grit come out of an elbow that was at least 30 years old. Then put MeFIX .. (from the chemist ) on it
leave for at least 7 days.. and preferably 10. Ignore smells and anything except vivid red streaks from the wound.. in which case you missed step A and may die And should get an ambulance.

Pull mefix off. Marvel at new skin.

[ldrcycles]

What goneriding and percrime said. I consider myself to be reasonably well experienced with cycling related wound management and have found keeping the wound moist works best for shallow grazing ('road burn' i call it, and it is treated somewhat like burns). That mefix stuff (or whatever it's called, i think that's it, it's basically vaseline infused gauze) is fantastic, i've had 2 serious doses of road burn on my outer thighs and neither shows any signs whatsoever of any damage.

[Mulger bill]

Depends on whether you want scars or not

[azzurribike]

Thanks for the ideas. Pretty sure there will be scars. Slightly amazed no one has asked about the bike. Sadly she may have to be put down as it now has terminal scarring on the left shifter

[RonK]

I have reason to wince even more when I see the pro riders fall and slide along the Tarmac cause now I know what it's lke

Well, if you treated the road rash the same way as the pro riders, you would have all the more reason to wince, as their practice is (reputedly) to scrub the injury with a nail brush until it bleeds, to be sure there is no infection-causing road grime embedded in the wound.

Personally I think that is a bit drastic, and just clean, dust with antiseptic powder and cover with Hypafix from the local pharmacy.

Some tips here Warning - bloody pictures.

And here.

Actually, there is a lot of good information on the web if you Google "cyclist wound dressing".

[Percrime]

MeFix wont scar. Not unless it has stitches in it.

[bigfriendlyvegan]

Road rash is a burn. Treat it like that. Get rid of the solids in it and then keep it moist by using a bandage with colloidal silver in it. Pretty much what ldrcycles said.

Treat is like a burn and you'll get it healed in 7 - 10 days.

[ldrcycles]

That link ronk put up mentioned opsite, i've used that too at some stage.

And is this the point where i can start putting up pics of my wounds?

[Percrime]

Opsite is mefix. different manufacturer same product.

Yes its a burn.

Trust me, us trackies know this stuff

[gdt]

... their practice is (reputedly) to scrub the injury with a nail brush until it bleeds, to be sure there is no infection-causing road grime embedded in the wound.

I've done this in A&E and can confirm that it works. Followed by an iodine wash, lashings of silver cream, and opsite held on with surgical tape. A thigh to knee 0.5 to 1cm deep "rash" with embedded road grime from an ash road came up fine.

[azzurribike]

Duoderm on now feeling much better already. Thanks heaps

[roller]

[gorilla monsoon]

Helps to wash the crap out immediately (drink bottle for water, jersey for some kind of abrasaive pad) then get home and into a shower so it can be cleaned-up properly. Get a litre or two of antiseptic into it for a day or two and after that comes aloe vera gel and the biggest bandaid/gauze you can find.
Change the dressing three times a day, washing the wound each time. Should clear up within a fortnight.
As others have said, the idea is to keep it moist. Takes the road pizza away and minimises scarring.
My wife used to be a vet nurse. She is used to treating dumb animals.

[cp123]

post a photo of it.

[MattyK]

post a photo of it.

My effort last week:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set= ... 2b94bc9bda

[birdbrain]

Percrime wrote:
OK this is how it goes. First ALL the dirt has to come out. Your best bet for this is a bath.. dettol and cotton buds. (I am assuming serious grazing here.. if you have just lost a bit of skin then harden up).

agree but replace bath with shower coz my wife keeps all her fish tank rubbish in the bath.