New Ulm weekly review., 1886-12-01
FINE sKIN-GRAFTiNG.
Successful Performance of very
Delicate Operation.

There is, says New York special, a
very interesting operation going on at
present at Roosevelt Hospital. It was
begun over three weeks ago, and it will
probably take as much longer for the
wounds to heal. It is one of those
plastic operations, which usually have
to be done in sections. Its success is
assured, as the most important part Of
it has been performed without any
drawback.
The patient is Robert McKeckney, a
young man, who came from Yonkers
to the hospital for treatment. The pa
tient, upon his admission, was greatly
emaciated and weak. The color of his
skin indicated a low blood supply.
Some seven months ago he was severe
" burned by the explosion of kero-
sene lamp, which set fire to his cloth
ing. The burned surface extended
over a large section of his body, the
worst place being upon the left side in
the obliquus externus and transyersalis
abdominis muscles. Being of a strong
constitution he rallied from the shock.
During months of suffering the wounds
upon his chest healed slowly under
soothing treatment; but on the left
side, covering a space several inches
square, was spot that showed unusual
obstinacy, and despite every sort of
medical application it could not be
healed.
An examination of the young mans
body when he was admitted to the hos
pital, a month ago, demonstrated to
the house surgeon that SO much flesh
upon the left side was cicatrical and so
much of the skin had been destroyed
in the neighborhood Of the liberated
surface, that there was no possibility of
its healing naturally, as there was no
material to throw off the little shoots
of skin. If it could be healed, it
would have to be done by grating the
skin from some healthy portion of the
body. So an operation was determined
upon, the object being to make new
side for the patient.
It took less ether to bring on
anesthesia in this case than had ever
been before seen in this hospital. The
first step in the operation was to re-
move all the dead flesh from the side
of the body. This required some very
fine dissecting, as every particle of
good flesh which could be saved was of
advantage. All the little ragged
edges were carefully cut away. and the
whole surface was made as smooth as
possible. No vessels of Importance
were touched, SO the hemorrhage was
slight, and the raw flesh was allowed
to remain covered with blood, to facili-
tate the operation. Fortunately the
left arm of the patient had not been
burned above the wrist. While the
left hand was twisted slightly inward
the surgeon marked out several long
narrow strips in the flesh of the fore
arm with scalpel. The arm had been
muscular and of large size. but had
become labby and more suitable for
the work. When three stripes had
been cut, with a narrow piece of skin
beneath them, the upper ends were
severed near the elbow. With a
keen knife the three pieces of flesh
were dissected up from the arm, be-
ginning at the top, until they were
about six inches long. AS each one
was cut loose it was laid back in it's
place in the warm blood until all three
were ready. The strips were kept
joined each to the arm at the lower
end, and while they were yet warm
and palptating they were placed upon
the raw flesh in the patients side, with
a little distance between them, and held
firmly in position until the blood around
them had become slightly coagulated.
These three strips did not cover the en-
tire unhealed surface, and the object of
making three strips instead of one large
one was TO gam more space by placing
them a little ways apart. in the hope
that new skin, if the grating proved to
be successful, would be developed from
each section, and would fill up the va
can't places. In addition to these long
pieces of flesh, smaller pieces were
taken from the patients thigh and
laid upon other portions of the exposed
surface. In order that the patients S
arm might be held firmly in position,
so that no strain could come upon the
strips of the flesh, pieces of sticking
plasture were heated and wound around
the arm and then fastened to the abdo-
men, the side, back and thigh. This
made an even pressure all around and
held the arm so that it could not be
moved in any way. The wound having
been treated antiseptically. the whole
abdomen was bandaged lightly and the
Datient taken tO his cot