Costumes in the OR: The History of Surgical Wear
Plague doctors: Separating medical myths from facts
“You’ve seen them before: mysterious figures, clad from head to toe in oiled leather, wearing goggles and beaked masks,” writes Winston Black, a historian of medicine and religion in medieval Europe. “The plague doctor costume looks like a cross between a steampunk crow and the Grim Reaper, and has come to represent both the terrors of the Black Death and the foreignness of medieval medicine. However, the beak mask costume first appeared much later than the middle ages, some three centuries after the Black Death first struck in the 1340s.”
This fascinating article discusses not only the plague doctor costume and its evolution but also some of the early writing and theories on the spread and prevention of plague.
Read more . . .
A brief history of medical uniforms: from ancient history to the COVID-19 time
From the abstract: “Medical uniforms date back to medieval times. Nursing uniforms were based on nuns’ clothes, whereas doctors used the famous ‘plague costumes’ and black ‘frock’ coats from about 15th to early 19th century.”
Read the study . . .
From formalwear and frocks to scrubs and gowns: A brief history of the evolution of operating room attire
This illustrated article provides a timeline for the evolution of operating room personnel wear from the late 1870s until 2016, when new ACS guidelines were announced.
See the article . . .
Images: (top) Copper engraving of a plague doctor of 17th-century Rome
(bottom) photo by Emin Baycan on Unsplash
Creepy Contaminants: Infection Control and Best Practices
New technology ‘lights up’ bacteria in wounds for better infection prevention
“When physicians debride, or clean out, a wound, they remove as much bacteria as possible,” begins this article from Keck Medicine of USC. “However, they face one key limitation — not all bacteria can be seen by the human eye, and some may be missed during the debridement.
“New Keck Medicine of USC research published in Advances in Wound Care suggests there may be a more effective method to detect bacteria during wound debridement. Autofluorescence (AF) imaging, where a handheld device ‘lights up’ bacteria previously invisible to the human eye, uses violet light to illuminate molecules in the cell walls of any bacteria. Different types of bacteria turn different colors, allowing physicians to immediately determine how much and which types of bacteria are in the wound.”
Where do the pathogens that cause surgical site infections come from?
A study from Long et al. shows that many pathogens that cause surgical site infections during spine surgery come from the patient’s own microbiome, suggesting a paradigm shift in the understanding of surgical site infections that questions the effectiveness of current enhanced sterility and antibiotic protocols.
Bacterial reservoir in deeper skin is a potential source for surgical site and biomaterial-associated infections
The origin of surgical site and biomaterial-associated infection is still elusive. Micro-organisms contaminating the wound may come from the air in the operating theatre, the surgical team or the skin of the patient. The skin of patients is disinfected prior to surgery, but bacteria deeper in the skin (e.g. in sweat glands or sebaceous glands) may not be reached.
Some Civil War soldiers’ wounds glowed in the dark?
Many websites and YouTube videos are dedicated to telling the story of soldiers’ wounds that reportedly glowed in the dark after the April 1862 Battle of Shiloh. Soldiers with the “glowing wounds” supposedly healed more quickly than those without, and called the phenomenon “angel’s glow.” Speculation in the 20th century led to a theory about a luminescent bacteria present in the soil getting into the wounds and, in a symbiotic relationship with nematodes (parasitic worms), killing off other small organisms that might have caused an infection and proceeding to reproduce unchallenged. Although such a reaction is not impossible, this Snopes article debunks the story, pointing out that Civil War historians have combed through thousands of contemporary sources of information about the Shiloh and other Civil War battles without encountering a single reference to glowing wounds; they theorize the story was a 20th century fabrication.
Photo: E. coli bacteria, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 generic license
In The Spotlight: Ben Thompson
Credentials
RN
Student Status
Current student in NIFA’s RNFA program
City & State
Rapid City, SD
Where did you get your RN degree?
University of Nebraska Medical Center
How did you come to choose perioperative nursing?
I like the team-based atmosphere.
What is one scary or funny moment you’ve seen at the table?
When someone cut the DaVinci power cords because “they looked cheap,” and when asked what happened, said, “It got cut.”
What is one technique or RNFA trick you’ve learned from NIFA that you will use for life?
I learned how much more there is to learn about surgery and will continue to seek growth.
How do you feel having your RNFA will impact your life/career?
I look forward to growing my knowledge and being someone others seek for answers.
NIFA – Office Hours
Monday-Thursday, 8:00am – 5:00pm
Friday, 8:00am – 4:00pm
Practice Resources
Here are several of the most-in-demand sites for our students, prospective students and grads:
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this newsletter are strictly those of their respective authors and do not necessarily represent the views of NIFA. NIFA does not give any express or implied warranty as to the accuracy of statements made by our contributors and does not accept any liability for error or omission. It is the responsibility of all perioperative personnel to work within and adhere to their facility bylaws and individual scope of practice.
What’s that chill in the air? That sound – a slight rattling of bones, or perhaps a distant cat howling? And was that a wraith who just slid past in the corridor outside the exam room, unseen but not unnoticed? They all herald our Annual Halloween Issue, when we let our curiosity lead us away from the serious work of surgery and down the path of the curious, weird, and odd. This time we look at OR “costuming” and creepy contaminants.