Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I admire the seller of this product for compiling a set of sterile medical supplies for the public, but I think they are doing a disservice by charging such a large mark-up for the very limited amount of goods provided.
I have built a similar kit piecemeal from other vendors, not for travel - simply to be prepared. My total out of pocket price was less than $7.00, and I actually got multiples of all of the items contained. The needles and syringes are available at almost any farm store, and are the same quality. Also, the needles included in this kit are far too long for most purposes, 1" or 3/4" would be preferable.
I'm not sure what the catheter would be used for in an emergency situation without an adapter plug or administration set, but I'm sure the intended customer can buy that along with a couple of liters of fluids in another kit from this vendor...
Comparable RETAIL prices, not wholesale - bulk prices are much better:
Sterile 3cc syringes, Google shopping = less than $14 per box of 100 with your choice of needles, $0.75 each blister packed with no needle.
Sterile 18G x 1" needles, farm supply store = $5.30 for a box of 100
Sterile 21G x 0.75" needles, farm supply store = $2.14 for a blister pack of 10
Sterile 25G x 0.75" needles, farm supply store = $2.38 for a blister pack of 10
Sterile 18G x 2" or 1.25" Terumo catheter, Google shopping = $0.94 each - $0.72 each in boxes of 50. Chinese medical supply manufacturers above typically send an assortment with their marketing materials if you ask for a quote - best deal around!
Sterile 1cc syringe with needle = Do you know someone with diabetes? Very likely they've got one to spare. Otherwise, it'll cost you about fifty cents.
Sterile gloves, Google shopping = $25 for 20 pairs, multiple varieties.
Sterile prep kit, army surplus = $1.29, includes 4oz bottle of povidone or chlorhexadine scrub, 20+ squares of sterile gauze, and a little plastic bucket for dilution.
Carbon neutral bag = What? This must be where the price comes from. I can recycle some other product packaging for free, but thanks anyway...
Suture is harder to come by for the non-medical public, but multiple Chinese OEM suture suppliers offer samples for potential customers to review for FREE. Also, 5-0 suture is pretty thin - in the unlikely event that I need to break out suture, I feel 3-0 would probably be a better all-around choice. Although, if you're traveling to a foreign country and need superficial repairs, 5-0 would probably be adequate.
As far as the actual repair instruments go, driving suture through skin without instruments is tough business, even for the tiny needle on this suture. In an emergency, a leatherman tool will work, but isn't really ideal. The good news is that you can pick up a decent minor surgery kit from most army surplus stores for less than $30.
Wraps for the pack can be constructed from linen or even a high quality pillowcase in a pinch. A pressure canner with a gauge can be used to steam sterilize the double-wrapped pack, or you can ask a friendly tattoo artist to run it through a cycle in their autoclave for a nominal fee.
Just my two cents - I really think you can do better than this if you need and know how to use these products. Including this extremely limited bundle of "medical supplies" in your luggage for travel to a third world country seems unlikely to improve the quality of medicine you would receive there, and will take up extra space that could be put to better use.
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Adventure Medical Kits Suture/Syringe Medic Kit
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