Leave impaled knives, metal or glass in place; press around the object and stabilize it
Removal can trigger severe bleeding and obscure injury assessment. Call China's 120, apply pressure around the object and pad it to prevent movement. Do not push exposed abdominal organs back inside; cover with a clean moist dressing. Do not seal a bubbling chest wound with airtight plastic, which can trap air and collapse the lung.
What it takes
Free. Resist pulling it out while waiting for the ambulance.
What you may gain
IFRC's 2025 guidelines advise pressure around an embedded object such as a knife, stabilization and no removal. Removing objects from chest or abdominal wounds can cause major bleeding and make injury severity harder to assess. Stabilize a pulsating object loosely without suppressing its movement. Do not replace protruding organs. An open chest wound without active outward bleeding may be left uncovered because sealing can trap air in the chest and partially or completely collapse the lung, a pneumothorax. All penetrating chest or abdominal injuries require immediate emergency assistance.
Context & considerations
Grade B reflects accepted guideline practice rather than randomized trials of removal versus retention. The source identifies airway obstruction preventing breathing as the exception. At hospital, immediately tell the triage desk “penetrating injury” instead of queuing for registration; see Chapter 24, entry 8. Calling 120 allows advance hospital notification. See major bleeding and tourniquets.
Research & references
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (2025). International First Aid, Resuscitation and Education Guidelines 2025, pages 256–257 and 267–268. https://www.ifrc.org/sites/default/files/2026-03/IFRC%20International%20First%20Aid,%20Resuscitation%20and%20Education%20Guidelines%202025.pdf