Page:Every Woman's Encyclopedia Volume 1.djvu/237

 6. Fractured Bune or Bones of Forearm. Bend the forearm to a right angle, ace that the thumb points upwards, and apply splints on either side. See that the splints only reach to the roots of the fingers, which must be kept warm and exercised to prevent them becoming stiff. Apply a wide sling. 7. Fractured Rib (with- out complications). Fold a towel to form a band eight inches wide ; draw this tightly round the chest and secure it with safety pins. Place the arm on the injured side in a broad sling (Fig. 4). 8. Fractured Thigh : Grasp the foot of the injured side and pull it to the level of the other foot. Make both feet rest on the back of the heels, and tie them together. Procure a long, stout splint reaching from the arm-pit to beyond the foot. Fig. 4: For a fractured rib a towel folded into a blood. There is a discharge and place it. iu position ^^t' .Sl^iu^STde™ t^ed t'^Urd jL^ ™ °' '>'°°<1 "' ^'<"^ '™'" '"e MEDICAL (c) Above the knee ; (d) Round both ankles ; (e) Round both knees. 10. Fractured Verte- brae. Fix a long splint down each side, tying the bandages over the bony parts of the trunk, and seek immediate medical aid. . II. Fracture of the Skull. No injury to the head should ever be neg- lected. Even if no symptoms of injury are apparent, the patient should lie quietly in bed for twenty-four hours. With fractured base of the skull involving pressure on the brain surface there are well - defined symptoms which are easily recognised. The patient is insensible. There is a puffiness about the eyes. The eyeballs are bloodshot, and the lower half resembles a clot of along the injured side. Apply a splint to the inner side from the top of the thigh to the knee. Arrange the bandages as shown in Fig. 5, so that they may be quickly tied by passing one end through the folded loop and tying it to the other (Fig. 5). Arrange the bandages — (a) Round the chest just below the arm- pits ; Seek medical aid. Keep the patient quiet, and apply the rules for the treatment of in- sensibility, which will be given in detail in a later article. When the Doctor Comes. A dislocation is a displacement of one or more bones at a joint. No attempt must be made by the helper to reduce a dislocation. Medi- cal aid must be sought, but while await- ing the arrival of the doctor, the limb should be supported so as to give most ease, and jolting must be minimised. If the accident occurs indoors, the cloth- ing should be removed (from the un- injured side first), the limb should be supported with pillows, and ice in a rubber bag, or cold-water dressings, applied to the joint. When cold dressings fail to ease the pain, apply flannel wrung out of hot water. It should be remembered that the patient is suffering from shock, and Fig. 5. For a fractured thigh the bandages should first be applied in this mannei therefore he or she must be treated accordingly. (b) Round the pelvis over the hip-joints (c) Above the fracture ; {d) Below the fracture ; (e) Round the leg ; (/) Round both ankles and feet ; (g) Round both knees. When made rigid with splints, a patient may be lifted on to a couch, bed, or stretcher (Fig. 6), but no attempt must be made to move a patient until the injury has received attention. 9. Fractured Leg. Draw the foot into its natural position, and tie both feet together. Apply splints on the outer and inner sides of the leg, reaching from above the knee to beyppd the foot. Apply bandages — (a) and (&) Above anc] below the fracture ; y/i/s series will be continued. Fig. 6, The bandages for a fractured thigh with the itnprovisecj splintj in position