| OCR Text |
Show and wanted it removed at once because she had no time to wait! Asked for the history, she told us that she had had this tumor for seventeen years, but at first it was only small like a walnut. Finally after discussion with her family, we took her in and after thorough examinations and blood transfusion, we amputated the leg. I am a little ashamed to report that we performed thirty-nine amputations, because an amputation indicates that the doctor could not cure the disease without crippling the patient. But whatever the disease, malignancy, an infection, or tuberculosis, patients come late and often the only help we can give is amputation. We also extirpated thirty-six different, some malignant, some benign tumors and we are most grateful to the Pathology Departments of the Peking Union Medical College, and Cheeloo University Hospital for making the histological examinations for us. Lacerations are of course frequent. We excise and suture them if the wound is not older than about eight hours. Our statistics show only five such procedures, because we get the lacerations when they are infected or worse, when the patient has already developed sepsis. How lucky we are to be able to purchase sulphonilamide which we have to use perhaps more than any other medicine. Unfortunately the financial status of the people must influence our medical decisions in many, many cases and more than anywhere else we are affected by the social indications. A man brings his son and he - 17 - |
