How Did American Surgeons Compare to Europeans?

The efforts of Civil War surgeons should be compared with those of their contemporaries: doctors who treated the casualties of the Crimean War of 1854-1856 and the Franco-German War of 1870-1871. Fatality rates during the Civil War, especially those following amputations, compare favorably with those of the British and especially the French in the Crimean War and were much better than those of the Russians and Turks (although statistics for those armies were less thorough).

The data for the British in the Crimean War are the most comprehensive available, thanks in large part to the interest taken in statistics by the renowned nurse Florence Nightingale. The British performed a total of 1,027 amputations, with a fatality rate of 28 percent. Overall, Union surgeons had a fatality rate of 26 percent, performing more than 30,000 amputations. Fatality rates varied with the location of the amputation; the closer to the trunk, the higher the percentage. One place the Union surgeons stood out most over their British counterparts was in amputations at the hip. In every recorded attempt by British surgeons, the patient died. Union doctors, on the other hand, succeeded 17 percent of the time.

The medical data for the Union forces in the Civil War are the most complete of any war involving America. Careful consideration of these records and the state of medicine here and in Europe at the time reveals commendable efforts and results. Overall, American surgeons during the Civil War did a respectable and generally successful job of trying to save lives. They deserve a better reputation than the lowly one they have received.

This article written by Dr. Bollet who is the author of the recent book Civil War Medicine, Challenges and Triumphs, published by Galen Press.