The optimum emergency treatment for amputations

Amputations are usually caused by accidents at work or in road traffic. In addition to the permanent inability to work, there is an increased likelihood of being confronted with social problems due to the loss of a body part. There is also a risk of psychological stress due to the resulting aesthetic disfigurement of the patient. Consequently, the replantation of a severed body part is of enormous importance, as it has an equal impact on the patient's professional life and general quality of life.

Replantations as a miracle of modern microsurgery

Replantation is the reattachment of a tissue or part of an extremity whose blood supply has been completely interrupted by complete or partial severance. Without a vascular anastomosis (a natural or surgically created connection between two vessels), these cannot survive. Specialised microsurgical techniques allow the nerves and blood vessels to be physically reconnected. It is then possible to regain the functionality of the body parts through targeted therapies.

The chances of success of a replantation depend on several factors (e.g. cause of the injury or type of cooling). The best chances of successful replantation are offered by so-called smooth amputations, in which the injury zone is small and the skin-soft tissue mantle is largely preserved. However, in the case of lacerations, bone splinters with larger injury zones or even tears, for example, replantation is considerably more difficult or is no longer possible at all.

Time as a decisive determinant

Time management is an important success factor in the case of replantation. The time between amputation and the ability to restore blood flow, also known as anoxaemia time, determines the survivability of the tissue, as does correct cooling and the size of the amputation. While smaller amputations without much muscle (such as a finger) have an anoxaemia time of up to 24 hours with appropriate cooling, this is significantly less than eight hours for muscle-rich amputations. Without cooling, the amputates only last less than four hours. Irreversible damage to the muscle cells can already be detected after these time windows have elapsed.

Safe transport and storage of amputates

The Dr Marx replantation bag increases the chances of success for an upcoming replantation by providing the patient with the best possible transport conditions for the replant. The special design of the bag offers protection against

mechanical influences of any kind,
temperatures that are too high or too low,
Water or other substances,
as well as against bacterial contamination.

Its innovative double-wall system consists of two bags of different lengths. The inner bag is used to keep the amputation dry, while the outer bag is used to hold a coolant (such as Dr Marx artificial ice with water).

Depending on the size of the amputation, there is a choice of three different versions: Size S (finger/hand), size M (arm) and size L (leg). Self-explanatory pictograms on the packaging help every first aider to use the Dr Marx replant bags correctly.

would you like to place an order? Order our Dr Marx replant bags from WERO now.