DEPARTMENT OF SURGERY. 
727 
aseptic during an operation they should be placed in a io# car¬ 
bolic solution and always replaced there when not in use. A 
io^ carbolic solution is none too strong for this purpose unless 
the container has been sterilized and the water used in making- 
it has been boiled and handled in the proper manner. The ob¬ 
jection to such a solution is that it will cauterize the hands, but 
this can be obviated by raising the instruments from the solution 
with a forceps instead of with the fingers. Weaker carbolic so¬ 
lutions are treacherous when made from ordinary tap water and 
contained in a u doubtful ” vessel. 
Hands of the Operator .—The hands of the veterinary sur¬ 
geon are probably more dangerous than any other of the infec¬ 
tion carriers. We are often compelled to assist in securing our 
patient before the operation can proceed, and after it has begun 
we frequently find it necessary to touch this rope or that strap 
to tighten some part of the casting appliance that has become 
loosened, to say nothing of the many times we unconsciously 
touch our own clothing, the operating table or the uncleansed 
parts of the patient. The hands should first be scrubbed with 
soap and hot water and then immersed in a 1-500 mercuric 
chloride solution. This solution is kept separate from that to be 
used upon the patient and is utilized repeatedly during the 
operation, especially when the hands have touched parts of the 
animal or any manner of substance not stertilized. Digital ex¬ 
aminations must be avoided as much as possible, even with 
the supposed clean hands. The assistants who have not taken 
the same pains to disinfect their hands must never be permitted 
to touch the wound. 
Surgical Dressings .—The common surgical dressings used 
in veterinary practice are : muslin and woolen bandages, oakum 
and cotton wadding, and silk and linen sutures. These sutures 
should be subjected to a prolonged immersion in a strong anti¬ 
septic solution. It is a good practice to keep them bottled up 
iu such solutions ever ready for use instead of depending upon 
a hurried sterilization. The wadding and bandages do not 
contact the wound as closely as the ligatures and are as a conse¬ 
quence perfectly safe if soaked and wrung out moderately in a 
1-500 mercuric chloride solution. 
The adjustment of drainage tubes in veterinary subjects is 
not a success, especially in antiseptic veterinary surgery. Be¬ 
sides the failure to answer the purpose for which they are in¬ 
tended, they can seldom be adjusted and retained satisfactorily. 
Drainage by packing with oakum or cotton is more suitable for 
