medicine on the western front: new developments Flashcards
what happened when the leg was not kept
rigid during transfer from the frontline
to a CCS
soldiers died of blood loss
what was designed to keep limbs and joints still during surgery
the thomas splint
how much did the thomas splint improve survival rate for soldiers with leg injuries
from 20% to 82%
who developed new brain surgery techniques
henry cushing
what % of injuries were to the face, neck or head
20%
how did cushing change brain surgery
reduced mortality rates form 50% to 10%
stopped patients bleeding to death
where was the underground hospital
arras
what were xrays used for
identify shell fragments and bullets in wounds
what were the xray problems
1) could not detect all objects in the body
2) men had to stay still for a long time
3) tubes were fragile and could only be used for an hour at a time
how did mobile xrays help war effort
by 1916, X-ray units were being used in casualty clearing stations and base hospitals
where were blood banks first used
cambrai (1917)w
what was used to prevent blood clotting as it was stored
sodium citrate
what did geoffrey keynes develop
developed a portable machine for storing blood
