The native American. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1840, 1839-02-23
GREAT SURGICAL OPERATION.

bv Professor Baxley OF the University of Mary
land. has been handed to us BY medical gentle
man who was present on the occasion, and upon
whose accuracy of descTi ption we can contidentl,
rely. While we ejoice to learn that the occa
>ions for such ali operation rare, we ar" a!>
grat6rd to find that we possess the skill ade-
quatr to the Undertaking when the duty is re-
quiz -d.-Bah American.
Mrs O. Of this city, had for the last ten
mouths iabored undsr a disease of the face
which had resisted the curative means of sevt.
raj physicians whose professional aid had been
sought, and which rapid, increased, until
threatened to destroy lite in few weeks. Tn.
night side Of her fac occupied by tumor
eXtending from the pronineme Of the cheek
bone downward below the edge of the love
jaw, from the chin to its pnst.Iior margin, anr
up to the socket where thus bone unites to the
zone OF the temple, extending backwards int.
the mouth as far as the palate and ton>s, up
wards Involving the root OF the mouth, aud
downwads BY the side OF tie tongue, which
was pushed to the Opposite side, so that the par
of the mouth not orcnylrd b, tn tumor was
80 filled up to render CHI W ne impracirabie
and the swallowing even Of u d> d icult.
The family of the patient state, that OH Pro
fessor Bake, visiting the case, he INN. dIat-I,
pronounced j, to be a tumor probably proceed
ing from the bone, constituting that form Of dis
Ease called osseosar-coma, and that he could ad
wise no means of giving her prospect of cur.
short OF t, ing the great teIy Of the neck, and
then removing the tumor itself The patient
however, could not summon The forttude at the
time, to consent to so repuisi,e an operation !:
and her friends, having learned that certain tu-
mors Of the face had been relieved by t, ing the
f,i al,
such was preliminary step to the operation pro.
posed BY DIR. Baxley. expressed desire to have
that done, in the hope that, the circulation being
cut off, The tumor might disappear. This was
accordingly done by DR.. B. on the 18th January
at the same time, the patient was assured that il
afforded scarcely chance of cure, and that the
removal of the tumor was the only Just ground
Of hope. The facility and adroitness with which
TIKI, OPP ration was performed encouraged the pa
tent, on the next day, 10 think that she migh
bear the additional one recommended and Oh
the l7th, this WAS undertaken BY Dr.. Baxley, it,
the presence Of his colleagues, Professors How
ard and Dorsey, DR.. G. Nj. Roberts and Others
and Mr. J. Rose, at whose instance Dr.. B. had
bsru requested to see the patient.
Before commenting this second operation, il
was found that the circulation had been com
pie,elt re.establsh-d in the tumor from the YES.
sells Of the opposite side of the head and that
the a.terrs on the effected side were puSa'ed
with fore. no less than those of the other side
concl' siveIy establishing the correctn' IS Of thu
opinion that there was scarcely chance Of cur,
lrom merely tying the carotid artery. The fire..
circulation made it necessary. during the opera
tion, to tie eight vessels, and cauterize severa
more.
Tie operation was commenced at the righ'
,I E.,t
down to the tumor, aud ,ermin. ted on the neck
d little beyond the point, or the ear. The mex
in,i>ion commenced in front and near The top Of
The ear, and extended below this organ, ending
10 the first ncision.
All the pats above the first cut, and extend
ing to the prominence Of the che, k bone, and
| hose also below it and reaching below the lower
jaw, were Gnirkly di>sectrd off the tun.or, whic!
,as now completely exposed, and was indeed al,
appalling spectacle.
The mex, step in the operation was to remove
The whole of the lower inv bone from the chin
to its socket above the middle Of the ear; this
was accomplished by saving through the bone
at the chin, Dr. oinfing ii al the sockets, and Sc
parating it from its lateral and inferior attach
men,s throughout its whole length.
The third and concluding step of this extra
ordinary operation was the dissection Of the re-
naming part of the tunor from its attachment
to the upper Jaw and roof Of the mouth, and as
lar back as the throat which was speedily com
pleled. ......A
Such was the astonishing frmness and self
command Of the suffering patient. that she ut
tered no complaint, nor offered d struggle, during
the operations and if unparalleled endurance
on the part of the patient aud unsurpassed co.,
ness and skll OH the part Of the surgeon in per-
forming this delicate operation, can insure re.
covery, the prospect Of Mrs. o. is extremely
Aarering We learn, on inquiry, that she is
now-'our days after the final operation-doing
WE'LL
1t is stated in Cooper's Surgical Dictionary for
1886, that small portions Of the lower jaw have
been removed BY several eminent surgeons but
The great operation of ampuating this jaw at the
chin and its joint. has never been performed eli,
thrr in Europe or America, except by the dis
'inguished DR.. Mott of New York, and Dr.
Cossack, Of Dublin. One oher case is men
ianed by Dtlp-au, in which IN. Grefe, OF
Berlin, one OF the most celebrated surgeons 0!
Germany, dared to disarticulate the lower jaw, .
las III the present case.