A handbook of local therapeutics / edited by Harrison Allen.

Date:
1893
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A handbook of local therapeutics / edited by Harrison Allen. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    218/554 (page 206)
    General Surgery.-Collodion was introduced into surgery as a suh' stuute for adhesive plaster by Maynard, of Boston. Its action is twofo d first, drawing together and holding in apposition the edges of a wound and, second, preserving them from contact with the air. When used in the form of the gauze and collodion dressing, which was introduced into practice in Philadelphia by the late P. B. Goddard, it is much more perma nent than the ordinary plaster. The gauze and collodion dressing is thus employed : Strips of tarlatan or mosquito netting, or—what is better- Donna Maria gauze, about half an inch to an inch wide and three to five long, are laid across the lips of the wound, previously washed and dried and secured with collodion applied with a camel's hair brush first to one end, then, when this is firmly adherent and dry, to the other. With neatness and care a superficial wound can be closed in this way almost as firmly and accurately as by the use of sutures. The strips will remain for a long time, as the dressing is impermeable to water, and the wound may be hermetically sealed by extending the application over the surface as well as on either side. A styptic collodion may be made by dissolving tannin in it. It may be used with advantage in cases in which there is a tendency to ooze. Carbolic acid or iodoform may be combined with collodion to conform to the antiseptic mode of dressing. In superficial wounds about the face and scalp the collodion and gauze dressing will be found most convenient. It is open to the objection that pertains to all adhesive dressings which are applied to the shaven scalp or face, namely, that in a few days the short hairs grow up underneath and cause the entire dressing to become loose. A. Hewson (''The Use of Earth in Surgery) claims that collodion] makes a dressing so firm that any degree of traction necessary may b( made from it. According to this writer, it should not be, as a rule, brought in contact with the lips of a wound unless it is expected that union be other than that by first intention. In wounds that cannot be readily inspected the lips can be brought firmly together by the aid of collodion gauze and yet «the oozing escape through the meshes. Venice turpentine is sometimes used in the arts to diminish the contractility in the collodion film ; such a preparation is unsuited for surgical purposes. Its use has been known to excite inflammation and vesication. Collodion is very useful to retain small antiseptic dressings about the face. The dressing is applied in the usual manner, covered with cotton, around the edge of which collodion is painted, causing it to adhere firmly to the skin. If thought necessary, the entire mass may be coated with the collodion, but painting the edges will ordinarily suffice. The con tractile character of collodion makes it of service in the treatment of smal Boils and Pimples. In such cases the collodion, applied in the earlies stage, is often effectual in arresting their development. Should it fail i