Pressure Controlled Esmarch Bandage Used as a Tourniquet

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to investigate the manual wrapping techniques of Esmarch bandages used as tourniquets by physicians and to study the controllability of their induced pressure. The properties of the Esmarch bandage were first tested using two cylinders to allow uniform stretching of the bandage and to control the elastic exercusion and pressure reading. The pressure was measured using a load cell and a DPSI electronic strain/stress/pressure indicator device. The placement of the load cell sensor was found to yield constant values when measured along the lateral direction normal to the tension directional field of the cylinder. The results also show that the pressure increases at a rate 3 to 4 times the initial pressure when the bandage is stretched after each wrap rather than over the total length initially. The measurements over a plaster foot showed different pressure readings but exhibited a linear relationship in all three wraps performed. The method also shows a linear relationship between the elastic deformation and the number of wraps necessary to achieve a certain degree of mm-Hg.