i62 CONTEMPORARY SCIENCE 



and leg and excluded amputations at joints and all the 

 minor amputations (fingers, toes, etc.). 



Of 2,089 sucn amputations in hospitals, 855 died, 



or 41 per cent. 

 Of 2,098 in country practice, 222 died, or 10.8 per 



cent. 



The latter were collected from 374 country practitioners, 

 thus eliminating the personal equation. The difference 

 was clearly due to the crowding and lack of sanitation in 

 the hospitals of that day. 



He gives two very interesting tables. The first is most 

 instructive in showing the results in the then unsanitary 

 state of all hospitals. 



Mortality After the Four Selected Amputations in Pro- 

 portion to the Number of Beds in the Hospitals 



In the large Parisian hospitals 62 in 100 die 



In British hospitals with 300 to 600 beds. 41 in 100 die 

 In British hospitals with 300 to 201 beds. 30 in 100 die 

 In British hospitals with 200 to 101 beds. 23 in 100 die 

 In British hospitals with TOO to 26 beds. . 18 in 100 die 

 In British hospitals with 25 beds or less. . 14 in TOO die 

 In isolated rooms in country practice. . n in 100 die 



In the second he tabulates the mortality according to the 

 experience of the operator. 



Death Rate After the Same Four Amputations in 

 Accordance with the Experience of the 374 



Operators 



Those who had done less than 6 amputa- 

 tions lost I in 7 



Those who had done from 6 to 12 amputa- 

 tions lost I in 9 



Those who had done 12 or more amputa- 

 tions lost I in 12 



What an argument for the necessity for a year in a 



