Compartment Syndrome

Compartment Syndrome; GA 3.12
Topic Started: Aug 9 2008, 12:09 PM (95 Views)
Carter	Aug 9 2008, 12:09 PM Post #1
O'Malley Forever Posts: 5,368 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: August 2, 2008 Favorite Character George O'Malley Favorite Couple Callie & Arizona	GREAT EXPECTATIONS Episode 312 Air date 01/25/07 Callie slices through that guy's legs, while he's awake! What is going on? It seems a little crazy. Not crazy. Limb saving! This guy is in trouble. His legs are swelling. And swelling. AND SWELLING. The swelling isn't stopping. It's like when you're baking a casserole and it overflows in the oven and makes a terrible mess. Only, his legs don't have a removable lid -- so instead of overflowing the ingredients of his legs -- the nerves and blood vessels and muscles and bones - start to get squished. And more squished. AND REALLY SQUISHED. Until they can't function anymore. Blood is no longer getting to his legs and therefore oxygen is no longer getting to his legs and his nerves are being compressed. There is no longer feeling or pulse in his legs. If this state persists -- which it WILL because the swelling is not resolving -- his muscles and nerves will DIE and dead limbs ain't good medically -- it results in amputation. So, Callie does the surgical equivalent of "removing his lid" and cuts open the back of his legs with a scalpel. The swelling is called compartment syndrome. The procedure Callie does to resolve it is called a fasciotomy. Usually this procedure is done in an OR under anesthesia. But, in this case the swelling was so rapid that time was of the essence and Callie's fast thinking will allow that man to run a marathon another day (with nice long battle scars on his calves). I know what you're asking, "Why is he swelling?" "Why does Callie have to think fast in order for this guy to run a marathon another day?" Here's the thing, the running and dehydration created the environment for compartment syndrome to happen -- but they didn't cause it. It just sort of happens sometimes -- like after surgery, a traumatic accident, crush injury, broken bones (especially if the cast or splint is put on too tight) or with a dramatic change in activity level (like when someone first enters basic training for the military) sometimes, under circumstances like these -- compartment syndrome just happens. As to why, I'd have to take a doctor level chemistry class to explain it all, and even then it would seem a lot like speaking a foreign language so let's just say -- Callie's quick thinking is a good thing and leave it at that. Credit: Sara (mcobsessed)



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