Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1872-06-16
A SURGICAL TRIUMPH.
A scaIped Lady Successfully Skin.
Grated.

A scalped Lady Successfully Skin.
Grated.
The Waterbury (Copn.) american con-
tains an account of successful surgery that
is worthy of notice. 1t is the case Of Miss
Hattie Thomas, who more than year ago,
while in the employment of Edwin Smith,
a manufacturer of buttons in NauSatuck,
had her hair torn completely off her head,
from the nape of the neck to the forehead,
including one eyebrow and a paIt of one
ear, by being caught in a revolving shaft.
The wound was worse than the scalping
by the Indian, who merely cuts a circle of
three or four inches diameter about the
crown, and leaves his victim tonsured like
a Roman Catholic monk or friar. Such
cases of scalping are on record in which the
loss of the natural head covering was sup
pIemented by an artificial toupee. But in
this case the exposure of the entire skull
threatened death by exhaustion induced by
suppuration. The american Of that place
says:
At the time, it was supposed the victim
of the horrid manning could survive the
shock but short time, and if she recovered
from the shock to her nervous system, her
life would be but of short duration, as she
could not long stand the agony of the pain
from the wound, nor the drain upon her
constitution by the suppuratiOn that must
inevitably take place. DR.. S. G. Bartlett,
then of Naugatuck, but now residing in
Waterbury, who was in almost constant at
teption upon the sufferer, found that she
was likely to rally from the first effects of
the accident. He therefore determined
to resort to the process Of "skin grating,
discovered about three years ago by M
Reverdin, of Paris, as q means Of saving
the life of his patient. About six or seven
weeks after the accident, when the wound
had been brought into healthy state OF
suppuration, the experiment was tried, the
patient herself furnishing the first "seed
skim from her arm. The method Of re.
moving the skin required is simply to
clasp the piece between the thumb and
finger, rising it up, and clipping off with a
knife or scissors. This first attempt was q
success, and greatly encouraged the doctor,
who continued the experiment, still taking
the ssseed skin" from the arm of Miss
Thomas, but the excessive discharge from
from the head wound, and the additional
drain from the new wounds, necessitated by
the removal CT the skin, made it absolutely
| necessary that the doctor procure
his supply of 'seed skin" from othel
sources. Miss Gibson, her faithful nurse
and particular friend before and after the
| accident, volunteered to furnish the next
supply, and when this lady was exhausted,
and the experiment continued to show
every indication of success, the doctor mu
| tiIated his own arm for the benefit of hi!
patient and the calculation Of science. And
not the least noteworthy circumstance is
that number ef the young lady friends Of
| Miss Thomas came forward and volunteer
/ ed to furnish as far as they could whateve
new material was needed. Thus the doctor
| AT various times and from different persons
! took Ga pieces of "seed-skin," varying il
| size, TIE larger pieces being sufficient Il
! cover silver half dollar. These larg
were. in some instances, divided
and subdivided, so that the numbe
of separate pieces applied T.
the wound amounted to at least one hun
dred and fifty. These pieces OF health
skin. thus transplanted, would soon grow
| and extend from one piece to another, un
til, after the lapse Of time, the piece
| would Join each other and shoot out unit
the margin of the wound was reached, au
/ iu this manner the neau udu UeCOuIS SAIIle
" covered with new growth OF skin. A
kinds of wounds heal from the margin anC
not from the center, and the growth froI
the old skin in this case, all round from tn
back of the neck to the eyebrows, has bee
only about an inch in twelve months. !
this Hgrafting'' or "transplantiDg" had Nc
been resorted to, the wound would haV
remained a runningsore and soon exhauste
the life of the victim.
On examining the head, the action
nature can be seen in the development
new blood vessels or veins, which branc
out and unite with each other, the origin
ssseed skim forming no impediment to ii
growth of the veins. The development
veins and blood vessels also indicates
healthy action of the skin.
It is doubtful if q case so remarkable
on record. If the experiment proves to
as successful as present indications promis
| the skill of DR.. Bartlett viii be as protitah
to him as the recovery of his patient W
| be gratifying.