Treatment of fractures of long bones by simple extension / by John Swinburne.

  • Swinburne, John, 1820-1889.
Date:
1861
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Treatment of fractures of long bones by simple extension / by John Swinburne. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

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    Case 2. James Y , aged 22 ; fracture of tibia and fibula; same treatment during five weeks. At the end of this time the limb was perfect. Case 3. J. R , aged 45, and weighing 300 lbs, and six feet six inches high, had oblique fracture of tibia and fibula; treated as above. Owing to the great contusion, the whole leg was cov- ered with blood-blisters when these gentlemen saw the case; whereas, in the other two cases, fracture occurred on the same day, but this blistering did not appear. On the twelfth day he was moved three miles without displacing the dressings. Owing to his extreme length, the foot piece was crowded against the foot of the bedstead, thus somewhat retarding the reparative process. Six weeks from the accident, the dressings were re- moved and the limb found as perfect as its fellow. Inasmuch as the bones were not very strong, I applied some split deal for tem- porary support. Eight weeks after the injury, the bone being not strong enough to support his great weight, I applied a starched bandage and allowed him to walk about on crutches. An inspection of all of these broken limbs, would leave the examiner in doubt as to whether they had ever been fractured ; in fact, the}^ were equally perfect with the sound and uninjured limbs. Treatment of fractures of arm by extension and counter-extension. The fractures of the superior extremities are subject to the same laws, and hence require the application of the same princi- ples. But, owing to the fact that the patient is not confined to the bed, the extension and counter-extension are necessarily made through the medium of a splirit, while, in the lower extrem- ities, the bed is the splint, the foot of the bedstead the point of extension, and the headpiece the counter-extending point. In fracture of the humerus through any portion of the shaft, simple extension can be made by having a splint extending three inches below the elbow and the same distance above the shoulder. The elbow is secured to the lower part of the strip of board by means of adhesive plaster passed through a fenestrum, while to its upper extremity it has fastened the extremities of an axillary belt. We are thus enabled to obtain full extension and counter- extension with comparative ease and comfort to the patient, the muscles making the only true splints. The arm is kept in a sling, and if the surgeon feels any uneasiness as to the disposition of the bone, he can place a strip of adhesive plaster loosely at short