Abstract
The oldest known archeological evidence of an extremity amputation was found in modernday Iraq and is more than 45,000 years old.1 Since that time, the technical performance of extremity amputations as well as the indications for amputation have dramatically changed. With war remaining a nearly constant occurrence and weaponry having become progressively more destructive, there is an increasing prevalence of combat-related amputees worldwide. For thousands of years, the sacrifices of the combat wounded and the innovation and efforts of their surgeons have improved and advanced medicine and surgery. With regard to extremity amputations, the influence of Hippocrates and Celsus propagated the most significant changes in ancient amputation techniques, including the use of vessel ligation and wound compression to achieve hemostasis.1 Their contributions developed into what we would recognize today as a nearly modern amputation technique.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Combat |
| Subtitle of host publication | Orthopedic Surgery: Lessons Learned in Irag and Afghanistan |
| Publisher | CRC Press |
| Pages | 205-220 |
| Number of pages | 16 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 9781040141311 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9781556429651 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 1 Jan 2024 |
| Externally published | Yes |