460 DISEASES OF THE HOBSB. 



HEaiOSTASIA. 



By this term is meant the checking of the flow of blood. It may be 

 accomplished by several methods, such as compress bandages, torsion, 

 hot iron, and ligatures. The heat from a hot iron will cause the im- 

 mediate clotting of the blood in the vessels, and this clot is further 

 supported by the production of a scab, or crust, over the portion 

 seared. The iron should be at a red heat. If at a white heat, the tissue 

 is charred, which makes it brittle and the bleeding is apt to be re- 

 newed. If the iron is at a black heat, the tissue will stick to the iron 

 and will pull away from the surface of the wound. Cold water and 

 ice bags quickly stop capillary bleeding, while hot water is preferable 

 in more excessive hemorrhages. Some drugs, called styptics, possess 

 the power of contracting the walls of blood vessels and also of clot- 

 ting the blood. A solution of the chloride of iron placed on a wound 

 alone or by means of cotton drenched in the liquid produces a rapid 

 and hard clot. Tannic acid, alum, acetic acid, alcohol, and oil of tur- 

 pentine are all more or less active in this respect. To check bleeding 

 from large vessels compression may be adopted. When it is rapid 

 and dangerous and from an artery, the fingers may be used for press- 

 ing between the wound and the heart (digital compression), but if 

 from a vein, the pressure should be exerted on the other side of the 

 wound. Tourniquet may also be used by passing a strap around the 

 part and tightening after placing a pad over the hemorrhage. The 

 rubber ligature has now replaced the tourniquet and is bound tightly 

 around the limb to arrest the bleeding. Tampons, such as cotton, tow, 

 or oakum, may be packed tightly in the wound and then sewed up. 

 After remaining there for twenty-four or forty-eight hours they are 

 removed. Bleeding may sometimes be easily checked by passing a 

 pin under the vessel and by taking a horsehair and forming a figure 

 8 by running it above and below the pin, thus causing pressure on the 

 vessel. Torsion is the twisting of the blood vessel until the walls 

 come together and form a barrier to the flow of blood. It may be ac- 

 complished by the fingers,. forceps, or by running a pin through the 

 vessel, turning- it several times, and then running the point into the 

 tissue to keep it in a fixed position. 



Ligation is the third method for stopping a hemorrhage. Seize 

 the blood vessel with the artery forceps, pass a clean thread of silk 

 around it, and tie about one-half inch from its end. The silk should 

 be sterilized by placing it in an antiseptic solution so as not to impede 

 the healing process or cause blood poisoning or lockjaw, which often 

 follows the ligation of a vein with unsterilized material. Sometimes 

 it will be impossible to reach the bleeding vessel, so it is necessary to 

 pass the ligature around a mass of tissue wliich includes the blood 

 vessel. Ligation is the most useful method of arresting hemorrhage. 



