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Research Article| Volume 57, ISSUE 2, P247-253, February 1965

Chemosurgical amputation for gangrene

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      Abstract

      The chemosurgical method for the conservative amputation of gangrenous toes and other parts consists of the chemical fixation of the tissues with zinc chloride and the subsequent excision of all but a thin layer of the fixed tissues. The fixation-excision sequence is repeated until a grossly observed gangrene-free level is reached.
      In favorable cases the final layer of fixed tissue separates in about 10 days and the wound heals with the formation of a soft, smooth, stable, well-vascularized scar.
      In a series of 380 patients with 446 gangrenous lesions, healing took place in 324 instances (72.6 percent). There were no deaths attributable to the operative procedure.
      The method extends conservative amputation to a considerably larger group of patients than was possible previously.
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