Cure a nosebleed with keys down the back

[snopes]

Comment: Stopping a nose bleed by dropping keys down the back of someone's
shirt or pressing a cold butter knife to the back of their neck.

http://fasthowto.com/?p=98

Sounds bogus to me.

[purpleiguana]

Originally Posted by snopes

Sounds bogus to me.

Ya think?

I guess before the invention of keys and butterknives, people had to resort to the tried and true witchcraft of direct pressure.

Either that or they all bled to death.

[ParaDiddle]

According to my EMT manuals, this actually does work. The correct procedure is to use one hand to run a metallic object along the patient's spine while using the other hand to apply presssure to both sides of the bridge of the patient's nose.

It's true, keys or a butterknife will work just fine for this.

- P

[RivkahChaya]

I want to know more about the healing chocolate.

[Floater]

Originally Posted by ParaDiddle

According to my EMT manuals, this actually does work. The correct procedure is to use one hand to run a metallic object along the patient's spine while using the other hand to apply presssure to both sides of the bridge of the patient's nose.

You don't think the words I highlighted are the essential part of the manoeuvre?

[jw]

When I was about ten years old, my amateur boxing days came to a sudden halt because I was prone to a bleeding nose. IRC a coach recommending the keys down the back method, which didn't seem to make any difference to me, yet they still persisted with this method with fellow pugilists.

Accordingly to the people's Pharmacy site, which is supporting this theory (see sixth comment down),

The keys work because of the mammalian dive reflex. Cold hits the nerves in the neck, causing the blood vessels to constrict.

However, this wiki page says cold water to the face causes the same reaction.

[RivkahChaya]

Cold does cause vaso-restriction. That's one reason to ice down a blow to keep it from bruising. While metal does tend to feel cold because of its thermo-dynamic properties, I doubt a small piece of room temperature metal (or keys that have been in someone's pocket) will be cold enough over enough surface area to help at all. And ice pack over the face might help, if you can breathe with it in place. If it's a really cold day, you can step outside.

And I think ParaDiddle was dipping into the humor jar.

[Brad from Georgia]

Huh. My folks used to rub an ice cube up and down my spine. Not to cure nosebleeds, but because they thought goosebumps were funny.

Brad "they simultaneously read the works of Poe and Lovecraft to me" from Georgia

[Tarquin Farquart]

Next time I get a nosebleed, I am so trying this!

[ParaDiddle]

Originally Posted by Floater

You don't think the words I highlighted are the essential part of the manoeuvre?

What's your address? I'll send you my used (still under warranty) Sarcas-O-Meter. It may take a bit of time to clear customs (Homeland Security and all), so just wait for it.

I'll also send my recipe to cure the common cold. It involves drinking a shot of bee urine, then staying in bed for 7-10 days. You also need to drink plenty of fluids.

- P