A Brief History of Gangrene
Gangrene has a unique and storied history; one that ties in closely with that of America’s bloody past.
The first documented case occurred in 1194 AD, when Duke Leopold of Austria contracted the disease in his foot after it had been crushed by his horse. It wasn’t until almost seven centuries later, however, that the disease fully took hold as a widespread and serious problem. The decade of the 1960s proved to have the highest number of recorded cases in history.
Playing a key role in this problem was the American Civil War and the unsanitary conditions that the soldiers would have dealt with. The conditions inside many surgical wards were so poor, the term “hospital gangrene” was coined, as many soldiers contracted the disease during their stay there. Because of the extreme trauma of war injuries, amputation was often necessary, and the large wounds left behind were very susceptible to infection.
Patients were subject not only to poor sanitation but also poor practice by surgeons. The importance of handwashing and the sterilization of surgical instruments was simply not common knowledge. Because of the horrible nature of the gangrene infections that patients contracted, people realized that a change was necessary in surgical protocol. It wasn’t until 1865 that antiseptics were commonly used in surgery, which was a practice that was pioneered by English surgeon Joseph Lister. This did not eradicate all instances of hospital-borne infection, but it was a huge step forward. We can thank gangrene for (indirectly) improving the standards and safety of surgery. The so-called “Hospital Gangrene” of the Civil War is considered an extinct disease now.
References:
http://ehistory.osu.edu/uscw/features/medicine/cwsurgeon/amputations.cfm
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