ed styptics, possess the power of
contracting the walls of blood vessels and also of clotting the blood. A
solution of the chlorid of iron placed on a wound alone or by means of
cotton drenched in the liquid produces a rapid and hard clot. Tannic
acid, alum, acetic acid, alcohol, and oil of turpentine are all more or
less active in this respect. To check bleeding from large vessels
compression may be adopted. When it is rapid and dangerous and from an
artery, the fingers may be used for pressing between the wound and the
heart (digital compression), but if from a vein, the pressure should be
exerted on the other side of the wound. Tourniquet may also be used by
passing a strap around the part and tightening after placing a pad over
the hemorrhage. The rubber ligature has now replaced the tourniquet and
is bound tightly around the limb to arrest the bleeding. Tampons, such
as cotton, tow, or oakum, may be packed tightly in the wound and then
sewed up. After remaining there for twenty-four or forty-eight hours
they are removed. Bleeding may sometimes be easily checked by passing a
pin under the vessel and by taking a horsehair and forming a figure 8 by
running it above and below the pin, thus causing pressure on the vessel.
Torsion is the twisting of the blood vessel until the walls come
together and form a barrier to the flow of blood. It may be accomplished
by the fingers, forceps, or by running a pin through the vessel, turning
it several times, and then running the point into the tissue to keep it
in a fixed position.

Ligation is the third method for stopping a hemorrhage. The blood vessel
should be seized with the artery forceps, a clean thread of silk passed
around it, and tied about one-half inch from its end. The silk should be
sterilized by placing it in an antiseptic solution so as not to impede
the healing process or cause blood poisoning or lockjaw, which often
follows the ligation of a vein with unsterilized material. Sometimes it
will be impossible to reach the bleeding vessel, so it is necessary to
pass the ligature around a mass of tissue which includes the blood
vessel. Ligation is the most useful method of arresting hemorrhage,
since it disturbs healing least and gives the greatest security against
secondary hemorrhage.

SUTURES.

After the bleeding has been controlled and all foreign bodies removed
from the wound, the gaping of the wound is noticeable. It is caused by
the contraction of the muscle