CHAPTER VIII. 

 SURGICAL ANTISEPSIS. 



MANY important advances in surgery have been made pos- 

 sible by the practical application of the principles of steriliza- 

 tion and antisepsis set forth in the preceding chapter. Pre- 

 vious to the introduction of antisepsis in surgery there was im- 

 minent risk of suppuration and septicemia even in the most 

 insignificant operations, and many of the capital operations 

 which are now daily performed without serious risks were at 

 that time so often attended by fatal consequences due to in- 

 fection that the patient and the surgeon were deterred from 

 taking the chances. 



The four sources of infection in surgery are from the bacteria 

 in the air of the room in which the operation is performed, the 

 bacteria on the surface of the patient's body, the bacteria on 

 the hands of the surgeon, and finally the bacteria on the in- 

 struments with which the operation is performed and on the 

 suture material and dressings. All of these sources of infec- 

 tion have to be taken into account and guarded against. 



In the modern operating-room the danger from infection 

 through the air is reduced very greatly. The room is so con- 

 structed and fitted with tables and other necessary furniture 

 that everything may be washed and rubbed with antiseptic 

 solutions. Everything is done to avoid the accumulation of 

 dust and to prevent the distribution of dust in the air. The 

 walls and floor are wiped with moist cloths since the bacteria 

 cannot be blown from moist surfaces by any ordinary circula- 

 tion of the air nor by even any draught that is ordinarily en- 

 countered in an operating room. On the contrary the bacteria 



262 



