AUTOTHERAPY. 
521 
periment practically every known rule of modern aseptic surgery 
was violated and the best results followed. Nothing was cleansed 
or sterilized. The instruments used were a scalpel, an artery 
clip and a pair of tissue forceps. These were taken from a pocket 
case of one of the assistants and used as they were. The wound 
was opened with the scalpel, after a futile effort to withdraw the 
splinter with the artery clip and forceps. It was taken away in 
small pieces. Time consumed, about ten minutes. 
First, the wound was not washed or made sterile. Second, 
the surgeon’s hands were not sterile. Third, the three instru¬ 
ments were not sterile. Fourth, the suture and the needle were 
not sterile. Fifth, the gauze covering the wound was not sterile. 
Sixth, the wound was placed in the unsterile mouth. 
After the sliver was removed, the patient was told to suck 
the wound vigorously for ten minutes Then a very superficial 
suture of silkworm gut was put in place, but the skin flaps were 
not drawn tightly. A flap of unsterile gauze was placed over 
the wound and held with a piece of tape. The tape was tied in 
a bow knot and the patient was instructed to loosen it and suck 
the wound every few minutes, especially when he felt any tickling 
or irritation in it. He was told to return to the hospital at any 
time if it gave him trouble, but to return at any rate in six days 
to have the suture removed. He did not return for two weeks 
and an orderly was sent to look him up. He stated the reason 
he had not returned was, “there was no necessity for returning; 
that the wound healed all right.” He was told to return and 
have the suture removed. He said, “ that’s all right, I took that 
out with my jack-knife.” 
The writer does not recommend the auto-septic treatment of 
wounds to the exclusion of aseptic methods. Asepsis is ideal and 
should be universally employed where possible, but auto-sepsis of¬ 
fers an additional safeguard that may be used if the surgeon 
deems it necessary. Placing the discharge of the clean wound 
in the mouth will do no harm. 
The curative effect in sucking the wound is two-fold. 
Besides getting the endotoxine of the parent bacteria in the 
