How did people before modern surgery fix broken bones?
In: Technology
Depends on the bone. With bones like arms or legs they would just try their best to put the broken bones properly into place again, bandage it with a splint, then hope for the best. In some cases the bones would heal, although often not correctly, while in some other cases they’d get infected or clotted and the person would die or require amputation. With bones such as ribs, hips, and kneecaps which are more complex to fix there wasn’t much they could do; a person with a broken rib just had to tough it out from then on, a person with a broken hip was crippled, and a broken knee would likely require amputation.
Overall due to the lack of antibiotics and hygiene it was rare for people to survive injuries such as this, even minor ones.
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