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Classic
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page 429
the wound does not heal properly by this process, owing to the condition of the
patient, a physician should be consulted. If any part of the body has been cut
off, it should be cleaned of foreign matter, and at once replaced, wrapped in
cotton to retain warmth, and a gentle pressure kept on it to retain it in place.
Circulation is often restored and the union made complete.
Punctured wounds need a pad at the surface to cause clotting of the blood in the
wound, but are otherwise treated like cuts. If pain follows and inflammation
ensues, the pad must be removed to permit the results of the inflammation to
escape. Thorns or splinters, when run into the flesh, should be removed by
cutting in far enough to get hold of and draw them out. Slivers under the nail,
when not reached from the end, should be removed by scraping the nail thin, and
cutting through it to the foreign body, and so withdrawing it; the part should
then be tied with a cloth wet with water, in which a few drops of laudanum have
been mixed. A puncture, by a rusty nail or some such substance, of the finger,
toe, hand, or foot, frequently causes inflammation, and yet there is not room
for the foreign matter left in the wound to escape through the tough skin, and
lock-jaw results; in all such cases the wound should be cut open to provide a
way of escape for the blood, etc., and a piece of linen wet with laudanum
inserted. Wounds from bruises and lacerations especially demand careful
treatment, on the same general principles given above.
STING OF INSECTS--Are relieved by the application of ammonia, or common table
salt, well rubbed in, or a slice of an onion, to the part.
BITES OF DOGS.--The only safe remedy in case of a bite from a dog suspected of
madness, is to burn out the wound thoroughly with a red-hot iron, so as to
destroy the entire surface of the wound.
POISONOUS WOUNDS.--Wounds by which poison has been carried into the system
require instant treatment. The wound must be burned out by a stick of lunar
caustic, or by inserting a large, red-hot nail.
BITES OF SERPENTS.--When bitten by a rattlesnake, or other poisonous serpent,
pinch the skin, and, if the wound can be reached, suck out all the blood
possible; if the skin of the lips and mouth is sound, no harm will be done.
Whisky or brandy should, however, be administered freely, to intoxication.
FOREIGN BODIES IN THE EYE.--The particle almost invariably lodges under the
upper lid, adhering to it. If that lid is grasped by the thumb and finger, drawn
outward and then downward, and then released, the lashes of the lower lid act as
brush, and sweep off the intruder. If, however, it adheres to the eye-ball, it
may be removed by rolling the upper lid over a knitting-needle, and holding it
there in such a position as to expose the surface, when the particle can be
removed by the corner of a handkerchief. Sometimes it may become imbedded in the
membrane which covers the eye-ball, or eye-lid, and require the aid of a
surgeon. Never use any of the eye-waters, lotions, or salves, advertised as
popular. A particle of lime in the eye is very dangerous, and vinegar diluted
with water should be applied at once; even when done immediately the eye will be
seriously inflamed.
FOREIGN BODY IN NOSTRIL.--Children often push foreign bodies up the nostril. To
remove it, make the child draw a full breath, and then, closing the other
nostril with the finger and the mouth with the hand, expel the air from the
lungs by a sharp blow on the back. If it can not be removed in this way,
compress the nostril above it to prevent its going up any further, and hook it
out with the bent end of a wire or bodkin. If this fails, call a surgeon.
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