Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1902-12-04
DARING OPERATIONS
CURING HEART WOUNDS AC-
TUALLY POSSIBLE.
NUMEROUS INSTANCES
Thirteen Cases in Which Cuts
in the Organ Have Been
Mended SuccessfuIIy-Exce edingIy
Nice Work by the Sur
geons.


wound of the heart which was operat-
ed on recently at Bellevue hospital, in
New York City, a medical man said:
While this case must be classea
among those unfortunate cases of
which it is said that the operation
was success although the patient
died, nevertheless, as matter of fact,
this remarkable operation has Teen
successfully performed number of
times.
1T is only during the last six years
! that surgeons have been bold enough
to attempt operations on the heart.
about twenty years ago DR.. John
B. Roberts of Philadelphia suggested
the possibility of sewing a wound Of
the heart 1t was not until 1894 that
DR.. Del Vecchio of Naples demon
strated the practicability of the idea
by performing the operation in expert
ments on dogs before the Inter
national Medical congress.
I'm 1896 the operation was actually
undertaken for the first time on a
human being. DR.. Farina of Rome
made the attempt, but his patient died
six days after the operation. In this
case death was due to pneumonia.
up to the present day, including
the case in Bellevue hospital, the at
tempt has been made thirty-fve times
/ to sew wound of the heart. AL
, together the operation has proved
successful thirteen times. These
! figures apply to cases in which the
wound has actually penetrated to the
interior of the heart.
| "The first successful operation for
wound Of the heart was performed in
1896 by DR.. REIN. Since then Dr.
/ Fontan has sewed wounds of the heart
in two patients and saved both of
! them from bleeding to death. DR..
! Nietert, an American surgeon, has
succeeded twice in three operations.
''Of the thirty-five cases, five dieo
on the operating table from hem
orrhage, ten died shortly after the
time, but finally died from Infection
of the wound. Of the whole number,
thirteen actually recovered.
DR.. Launay's case is perhaps the
most remarkable on record. The in
jury was bullet wound. The tall
passed through the heart. 1t entered
near the top of the heart on the front
and came out close to the base on
! the back of the heart. Both wounds
were stitched and the patient re-
covered completely in a short time.
This experience almost justifies the
remark of an overenthusiastic young
medical man, who declared that at the
present time if a man wants to die he
must have his heart cut out and
killed with a club.
I'm DR.. Watten's case he found it
necessary to place his hand behind
the heart to hold and steady it while
he introduced the stitches. AS soon
as the wound was closed the action OF
the heart became less tumultuous
than before the operation.
Zone operator stated that after the
action was interfered with tenn
porarily, but it soon began to beat
rapidly and violently as long as the
instrument was in place. He says
it almost seemed as if the heart was
surprised, and at first checked. by the
| bite of the forceps, and then made
violent efforts to escape from the grip
which held it.
"At one time it was thought that a
needle puncture of the heart would
prove fatal. 1t is now known that
such a wound does no great harm.
| The hemorrhage which follows stops
spontaneously and quickly. Bleeding
from wounds inflicted by sharp IN
struments is more profuse than when
the wound is made by a bullet. When
the wound is made in a transverse
direction the hemorrhage is more
severe that if the wound runs parallel
to the course Of the fiLers of the heart
muscle.
wounds of the heart heal the same
way as in any other part of the body.
Considering that the heart is an
organ whose function never ceases,
it is most remarkable that nature is
able to repair an injury involving a
part which is never at rest even for
second of time. Nevertheless, it is
true that the process of repair often
takes place, and the scar marking
the site of the wound will be firm Ill
fourteen days.
''Al heart wounds do not cause
instant death. Many patients live
number of days before hemorrhage
proves fatal, even when no operation
is performed. Without an operation
more than 80 per cent. of the heart
wounds terminate in death.
'If it were possible to reach the
heart easily the question of treating it
surgically would have long ago been
solved. When surgeon is called to
a person who is bleeding to death
from an injury to the heart, he cannot
Immediately take hold of the wounded
organ and proceed to sew the rent in
its wall, made by a knife or a bullet,
as the case may be. While the heart
is really only short distance from
the surface Of the body, it requires
that formidable operation be under
taken before the surgeon can reach
the injured organ. A large opening
must be made in the chest. This is
done by making an incision, having
three sides, through the skin and
underlying tissues, including a number
or ribs. The flap composed of the
entire thickness of the wall of the
chest is then forcitly turned up, like
a door on a hinge The lung is then