Monday, November 24, 2008

The Sights and Sounds of Open Heart Surgery

Here's some nice footage of open heart bypass surgery.

(Warning: the heart contains blood.)

In medical school, I was always impressed that the sounds and smells of the operating room never accompanied pictures I'd see in text books. For the unititiated, these can take one by surprise. Although the smell of electrocautery cannot be captured in this video, the sound of the bone saw as it cuts through the sternum is recorded... loudly.

-Wes

5 comments:

  1. good one. i encourage you to submit this for SurgeXperiences.

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  2. As a premed student, I cant even fathom how surgeons learn these techniques. Everything looks so fragile in this video. Awesome to see though.

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  3. The smell is really what did it for me. I think I could have watched the open heart surgery for a while but once that charred bone smell started, I had to go and sit down for a few minutes.

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  4. I loved the link, I was an open-heart scrub nurse for a few years and it brought back lots of good memories. Yes, the smells can get you but there is no other feeling like watching the heart beat again on its own after it has been absolutely still. Well, except the first cry of a newborn baby, maybe.
    Thanks

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