They never show that stuff on TV, basically because you can’t. I don’t really mean when they find a big tumor, they say, “that tumor weighs a ton,” unless, however, it was found according to my criteria in the header.
Peace out.
I would imagine when doing things like biopsies that feel would be important. IIRC when doing something in parts of the spine (like an epidural) the doctor can feel how what part of the spine they are in based on the amount of resistance against the needle.
I’d also imagine orthoscopic procedures rely a lot on feel as well.
I haven’t done any surgeries, but I’ve done my share of animal dissections and I can tell you sense of touch is very useful. You can feel when you’ve cut through one layer, when you’re about to hit another, or if you’ve nicked something you shouldn’t. You can also differentiate between different tissues, organs, and whether they’re normal by texture and consistency. If, for example, you find a hard mass in otherwise soft and spongy lungs, you know It Shouldn’t Be There.
Smell also can be useful. At the very least, everyone in the room knows if you puncture the intestine or stomach…
I’m no sure what, exactly, you mean.
A lot of times it is touch- a tissue feels fragile or friable, or hot, or matted or fibrotic.
Sometimes smell- you only have to smell melaena once to recognise it again.
Hearing- not a lot in surgery, but a fair amount in medicine when you listen to the heart and lungs.
Taste- pretty much never.
But sight is the big one- you’ll spot bleeding, tumours, abscesses and general weirdness visually before you pick it up in other ways.
IV cannulas:
Most people think you aim for a vein you can see, wait for the flashback, and voila- there it is.
Not true- you aim for a vein you can feel (they feel bouncy), feel for the “pop” as the needle enters the vein, check there is flashback, advance the cannula while withdrawing the needle (making sure you have no resistance), check you have flashback with the needle withdrawn, and then you’re good to flush, tape down and cap off.