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Blood Vessel Shunt May Save Limbs In War
The FDA has just approved for military use a shunt that allows partially-severed limbs to continue to get circulation. The FDA approved the device in a fast-track process lasting only a week. The article notes: "For most, it won't be a matter of saving a limb outright but rather salvaging the quality of a wounded leg or arm... The shunt may save injured limbs from amputation, since it can be implanted on the battlefield to maintain blood flow until a wounded soldier undergoes surgery, FDA officials said. Since the start of the Iraq war, more than 500 soldiers have lost limbs, many to injuries suffered in roadside bombings."
Peace may save limbs lost in war.
In short: stop warmongering, and soldiers will stay in one piece.
"A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
Only 500 soldiers have lost limbs since the start of the war? Why does that sound so unlikely? We've been hearing all along that the death toll is so much lower than previous US wars because of advances in trauma care that allow soldiers to survive injuries that were once not survivable, but we're seeing a huge increase in limb loss in the trade off.
Does anyone know if this statistic is accurate?
Well, the figures for people with amputations aren't readibly available. What you can find, though, is the figures on total casualties. See this link. So we know that (as of Feb 2006), a total of 23,000 troops were wounded in action and survived, of which some 7000 required to be medevaced. (Hence my 7000 figure from the earlier post.) I've looked a bit, but I haven't seen any reports on the final disposition of those casualties - how many of those make full recoveries, how many are amputess, blind, deaf, or end up with medical discharges at some point.
Have you been touched by his noodly appendage?
Sure, it would be nice to not be in Iraq, but the fact remains that we're there and we're not pulling out anytime soon. Even if we were pulling out of Iraq immediately, there will be other wars in the world. This technology has nothing to do with politics, so knock it off.
I'm not that familiar with battlefield medicine, but this seems like a big step forward for it. Anything that helps soldiers (American or otherwise) do their jobs better, protects them, or helps them live better lives after conflict is a good thing.
You have enemies? Good. That means you've stood up for something, sometime in your life. --Winston Churchill
Uh. The same reason football players can't keep playing professionally after they've fucked up their knees?
Just because it's still connected doesn't mean it's still functional.
A partner of mine,who was an orthopaedic surgeon in Iraq for 4 years, did over 600 amputations, and he's just one surgeon.
That number is waaay lowballing the actual number.
..........FULL STOP.
Actually, a great number of Iraqi casualties are treated by US forces.
The article, and the discussion here, only considers Americans. In reality, there is probably over 10 injured Iraqis for every injured American.
The inability of the average American to even consider this can be seen as the whole problem of this war in a nut shell, if you're in a grumpy mood.
An other mathematical factor is that you can amputate 600 limbs on only 150 people.
Nobody thinks the world would be at peace. But we wouldn't have fucked up Iraq. Saddam was no hero, but his was a secular regime hated by those who hate us. All we've done is give them another country to turn into a theocracy. At this point, there is no hope for the next three decades at minimum. Either we stay there till it is even more obviously impossible, at which point the anti-US theocracy takes over and 30-40 years later, tensions ease (think Viet Nam). Or we leave now, the theocracy takes over, and 30-40 years later tensions ease. This is all Bush's fault. Oh, and Nader's.
What changed under Obama? Nothing Good
The anonymous parent post, flagged as flamebait, is dead on. It's just so dead on it's sad. And I'll be proud to be modded down as well.
I just wish there was some way for the tiny minority who knew full well in advance that this war was a bad idea could have actually stopped it. But that's not how the world works. The hotblooded masses create a mess like this and then when it becomes obvious, they just embitter themselves against those who warned them rather than learn or admit they were wrong. Whatever.
And of course this is an appropriate venue for this dissent: it's a serious fucking war. It's more important than anything. If you're complaining about the subtleties of message board etiquitte you may want to rethink your priorities.