The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-02-06

%HfN ANRE tttN 80
Ia Coat Baton Proves 81 A
Medsrn
The unusual manner in NhIeh p ae
laf skin was cut froDi bo5 this
grated III his eye "a enable him q
an artificial eye to replece cnA
strpyed BY accident has been nro
to the attenf3on 81 the ply
New York academy of Medicine
patient is Richard Son Rome 81 J
sey Cifgs a fourpdry band and G
healthy specimen Of boyhood. AQ
weeks ago while he was pouring so
molten metal in q mold 81 splashed aHA
q drop Of il struck the boy ~ the ri8a.
EYE. It burned away par u Ppe
lid almost instantly and sank into the
pupil, destroying the sight sDM
chambers, Of Jersey City. WINS called
fand, applying cocaine To- reduce the
pain, he examined the eye. Hef5uud .
btiny speek of the hardened metal ia
baIl Of the eye, and decided that the enc
tire organ would have to Be- remud&
When this was done and the injured
surrounding tissue was cut away the
surgeon discovered that there wasAt
Enough of the eye socket left to hold III
place even the smallest sized ~aftifeial
eye.
DR. Chambers resolved to try q delia
cate feat of Thierseh grating 90 REM
Fdy. the defect. Previous successful
Experiments at skin grating had been
made when the skin was grated On
fiat surface. The difficulty in this case
Jay in making the flesh grow into q
cavity like the eye socket. and as too
hucR pressure destroys all chance 81
the grated flesh growing upon the sur
face to which it is applied, theuEdes
taking was particularly hazardous.
Three weeks ago the surgeon went
about his task after an unusual 1neth
cd. The injured eye socket was en-
tirely healed BY this time. The night
before the operation he prepazed
section. measuring w by four iuches
Of the flesh of the thigh ana swathedA
It in antiseptic bandages over night.
The next day he put the lad under the
influence of ether. The eye socket@was
sprayed with cocaine, an incision was
made in the tissue, the section 81 flesh
was cut away from the thigh and
transplanted to the upper part OF the
eye socket and fitted in the fresh in
eision.
Before this was done, however, the
surgeon had to devise a means of hold
ing the graft IN place without too great
pressure. He hit upon the ~expedient Of
using an ordinary fat-surfaced OVER
coat button about, ar inch in diameter
This was covered with a~ntiseptie
gauze and fitted in the cavity. The
graft of skin was stretched oversfk and
the button ana the skin craft were
pound firmly in the eye socket andal4
owed TO remain q week u~ndisturbed.
The button had four holes in 1t, which
permitted the free circulation DC 4be
fluids Of the eye while the grating
Process was in progress. Atthe end al
the week the bandage was renaoted
and it was discovered that the trans.
planted flesh had grown+upon the eve.
making a new and healthy nnner lid
that would hold an artificial eye in
place.
The secret of the success Of the oper-
alton, DR.. Chambers said, was the prtg.
ence of the holes in the button.
The boy was at a recent meeting OF
the Academy of Medicine, and showed
the assembled physicians that the eye
cpuld he removed and replaced with
epse. He had practically d new Y
spcket. All pain had disappeared, and
AL danger of the sound eye being al.
ffcted through sympathy. Two ply
%slcians reported that they had tried
skin grating for somewhat similar
but had failed because they
had not used the button, or a similar
They declared they would try
the experiment over again With the
button, and report the result to the
aeademy.-N. X Sun. ~ as