# When removing ruined meat from a infected fluid wound, why put the scraps on the patient's arm?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [May 16, 2017, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719 "2017-05-16T05:19:26Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@dude\_robert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dude_robert)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/1 "2017-05-16T05:19:26Z")
So, the other day I saw a medical procedure where a man had bought a tattoo, but it got infected, so some doctors were pulling some tube-shaped pink goop out of a hole in the skin, but instead of putting the pink goop in a bin or storage device, they just put it on the patient’s arm instead. Soon, his arm was covered in ruined flesh and bits of infection.
Later on, the pink toothpaste-like substance stopped coming out and then a bunch of brown and yellow fluid rushed from the hole. But after a while, the liquid started getting quite bloody. What is the risk of bleeding the patient to death from a procedure like this?
EDIT: Whoops, I should have put this in IMHO instead. Will report it to be moved…
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### Author:  [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/2 "2017-05-16T06:00:55Z")
Where did you see this?
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### Author:  [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/3 "2017-05-16T06:07:43Z")
I’m guessing he saw it on YouTube and I suspect it wasn’t a doctor but rather one of those home-surgery things YouTube has tons of.
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### Author:  [@USCDiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/USCDiver)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 7:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/4 "2017-05-16T07:57:12Z")
The pink goop is pus and the idea is to get all of it out of the skin. You can clean it up later.
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### Author:  [@Isilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isilder)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 8:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/5 "2017-05-16T08:30:49Z")
They were keeping it to measure how much and in case there was some clue as to the problems inside of them. If they put the bits on tissue or on a plate it would be harder to see,
and anyway they were doing it for the camera .
blood clots stop capillaries leaking.
An infection that destroys an artery is very severe and his arm is least of his worries at that stage. so if there was a lot of blood, they’d just go straight for the leaking artery and clamp it.
yes a bleeding artery anywhere can cause death… internal bleeding is as bad as external bleeding, but you know they can see an artery bleeding … just the little needle thing to take blood can cause blood stains under the skin.
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### Author:  [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 8:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/6 "2017-05-16T08:31:08Z")
**Moderator Action**
> [@dude\_robert](#):
>
> EDIT: Whoops, I should have put this in IMHO instead. Will report it to be moved…
Moving thread from GQ to IMHO.
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### Author:  [@MichaelEmouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelEmouse)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 9:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/7 "2017-05-16T09:32:40Z")
It’s sexier?
Or is this question unrelated to your previous one? [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=826099](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=826099)
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### Author:  [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/8 "2017-05-16T11:24:56Z")
They’re made of meat!?
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### Author:  [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/9 "2017-05-16T12:02:15Z")
> [@dude\_robert](#):
>
> Later on, the pink toothpaste-like substance stopped coming out and then a bunch of brown and yellow fluid rushed from the hole
Gosh, I hate it when the New England Journal of Medicine gets all technical-like. ☹
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### Author:  [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/10 "2017-05-16T14:55:45Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#):
>
> Gosh, I hate it when the New England Journal of Medicine gets all technical-like. ☹
That’s why I stick to JAMA.
Or Home Surgery Monthly.
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### Author:  [@dude\_robert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dude_robert)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/11 "2017-05-16T18:06:13Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#):
>
> Gosh, I hate it when the New England Journal of Medicine gets all technical-like. ☹
IANAD, I don’t have a clue about all the various things the structures or processes are named after.
> [@MichaelEmouse](#):
>
> It’s sexier?
> Or is this question unrelated to your previous one? [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=826099](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=826099)
Unrelated.
> [@Isilder](#):
>
> They were keeping it to measure how much and in case there was some clue as to the problems inside of them. If they put the bits on tissue or on a plate it would be harder to see,
> and anyway they were doing it for the camera .
>
> blood clots stop capillaries leaking.
>
> An infection that destroys an artery is very severe and his arm is least of his worries at that stage. so if there was a lot of blood, they’d just go straight for the leaking artery and clamp it.
>
> yes a bleeding artery anywhere can cause death… internal bleeding is as bad as external bleeding, but you know they can see an artery bleeding … just the little needle thing to take blood can cause blood stains under the skin.
I don’t know if there was a dangerous artery nearby. I was just thinking that at the end there seemed to be a lot of red liquid pouring out of the hole, although it might have been diluted with other liquids.
How would it be harder to see? If anything, a white plate would be easier to see, because it would be yellowish reddish meat on a white plate, and not yellowish meat on yellowish skin. Plus, what if the skin moved around a bit and the meat fell off? Not to mention it could be dangerous if there were cuts on the skin.
> [@USCDiver](#):
>
> The pink goop is pus and the idea is to get all of it out of the skin. You can clean it up later.
Some people on the comments suggested it might have been packing tape.
> [@Broomstick](#):
>
> I’m guessing he saw it on YouTube and I suspect it wasn’t a doctor but rather one of those home-surgery things YouTube has tons of.
Well, it looked reasonably professional as they had electric lights and white corridors going on there.
Here is the video of a small part of the operation here.
(NSFW) [ItemFix - Social Video Factory](https://www.liveleak.com/view?i=6de_1467245219)
You can see at the end that once all of the pink pus/packing tape has been removed, there is a bunch of liquid pouring out that becomes bloody. I am wondering if this is just blood that built up after a long time, or is it fresh blood delivered by a blood vessel?
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### Author:  [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/12 "2017-05-16T18:18:20Z")
> [@dude\_robert](#):
>
> IANAD
You should have mentioned this in the OP. I assumed you were a doctor or nurse.
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### Author:  [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/13 "2017-05-16T18:21:00Z")
Because I’d rather not watch that again, I’m going to ask if it’s the same video where the “surgeon” is using nail clippers.
That wasn’t done by a doctor, or even in a health clinic.
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### Author:  [@dude\_robert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dude_robert)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/14 "2017-05-16T18:50:58Z")
> [@kayaker](#):
>
> You should have mentioned this in the OP. I assumed you were a doctor or nurse.
Umm, you are being sarcastic, no? I thought things like “pink toothpaste stuff” would be pretty obvious that I have no idea what I’m talking about, not to mention the actual question itself. I will definitely be putting that on new OPs, though.
> [@nearwildheaven](#):
>
> Because I’d rather not watch that again, I’m going to ask if it’s the same video where the “surgeon” is using nail clippers.
>
> That wasn’t done by a doctor, or even in a health clinic.
Yes, there is only one video that I’m talking about. The surgeon appears to be using nail clippers and is wiping the hole down with some sort of towels. At one point they run out of the theatre and into a storage room to get some more towels, since the first few weren’t enough.
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### Author:  [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/15 "2017-05-16T19:02:11Z")
> [@dude\_robert](#):
>
> Umm, you are being sarcastic, no? I thought things like “pink toothpaste stuff” would be pretty obvious that I have no idea what I’m talking about, not to mention the actual question itself. I will definitely be putting that on new OPs, though.
I thought you were discussing medical issues in terms we could all understand.
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### Author:  [@dude\_robert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dude_robert)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/16 "2017-05-16T19:19:31Z")
> [@kayaker](#):
>
> I thought you were discussing medical issues in terms we could all understand.
:smack: Ah, I see. Well, I’m definitely NOT a doctor, and I don’t have any qualifications at all in that field. The reason I asked this question is because I don’t have a clue about much of anything (other than the basic objective) in that video.
Really, I had just come across it while browsing videos on liveleak, and after watching it, I was just curious on why the “operators” were putting the remnants on the man’s arm.
Sorry for the confusion, but it wasn’t my plan or anything to come across as something that I’m not. Good thing I did add that one “IANAD” there, I guess.
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### Author:  [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/17 "2017-05-16T20:57:10Z")
Well I’m certainly glad you’ve cleared all that up for us.
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### Author:  [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/18 "2017-05-16T21:27:29Z")
That video was referenced in a prior thread around here and the verdict of actual doctors was deplorable amateur technique. That wasn’t done by an actual surgeon.
Infected wounds can produce pretty amazing quantities of puss and fluid, as I know from experience unfortunately (I have had to have real, actual surgery performed by a real, actual surgeon on one occasion, also referenced in a prior thread on this site). It looks alarming, but no, the person in question was not in danger of bleeding to death if we’re referring to the same video.
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### Author:  [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)
#### Post date: [May 16, 2017, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/19 "2017-05-16T22:59:29Z")
In danger of bleeding to death? No.
In danger of becoming septic (i.e. blood poisoning)? Heck, yes.
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### Author:  [@cwthree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cwthree)
#### Post date: [May 17, 2017, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719/20 "2017-05-17T00:16:45Z")
> [@dude\_robert](#):
>
> Some people on the comments suggested it might have been packing tape.
Not packing tape, just “packing.” Medical professionals (not people on YouTube), when treating a deep wound in a medically professional manner (not pulling stuff out of a huge abscess with nail clippers) will sometimes stuff the wound with strips of sterile or medicated gauze. This forces the wound to heal from the inside out. If the skin closes while the deeper parts are still bleeding, forming pus, and so on, an abscess may form. Packing keeps this from happening. The gauze needs to be removed and replaced periodically, and it can look really nasty, especially if the wound is still oozing.
I’m pretty sure I know which video you mean, and that’s not packing. That’s infected/dead tissue and pus.
[Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-removing-ruined-meat-from-a-infected-fluid-wound-why-put-the-scraps-on-the-patients-arm/786719.md?page=2)