@whumpster-dumpster / whumpster-dumpster.tumblr.com
How does cautetisation work?
It destroys some tissue, usually through burning or dissolving it with hot or cold instruments, in an attempt to mitigate bleeding, remove undesired growths, or minimize other potential medical harm, such as infections, when antibiotics are unavailable.
Heya Red! I'm a long time lurker and fan of the blog, and I was hoping you could assist me with some scar tissue I'm going to be writing about in the near-ish future. To put it briefly, A was attacked by B - who is a super powered mutant with claws that can be heated up to cause severe burns. B dug their claws into A's back while they had the claws heated up, causing deep puncture wounds and burns at the same time. I imagine that the puncture wounds would have been cauterized by the heating factor at the time everything was being inflicted, but what about the aftermath? How would doctors go about treating such injuries? Do you think they would try to stitch the flesh together normally or would they try to scrap the burned tissue off then stitch it? Or would they do nothing at all and let everything heal as is? If they did that, would that leave cavities in A's back? Or would the flesh completely regrew (albeit be very scarred looking from the trauma)?
That’s a big question! I can’t say for sure but I would assume first they would need to try repairing any organs, muscles, etc. that may have been nicked or otherwise damaged by the claws. They would probably debride the damaged tissue rather than try to stitch back what may be too badly burnt.
If the wounds are deep enough or the skin loss is too big to be held by stitches, they might do a skin graft instead. The skin graft might look somewhat indented, red or purplish at first and then start looking more like the surrounding skin over time; it could take a year or two. Beyond that, they’ll probably need to be assessed for nerve and spinal damage that could cause loss of sensation, paralysis and such.
Hey Red! First, I wanted to say that I really love what you do here! Your blog is amazing, I'm so glad I found it! ❤️💜
Second:
I have a character who has powers of lightning, electricity and such.
His friend, the Whumpee, gets hurt. They're without the resources to stop the blood and close the wound, so their only choice is to cauterize the wound.
Do you think my character would be able to use his powers to cauterize the Whumpee's wound? Like, make sparks and electricity in his fingers or something. If you have suggestions of other ways he can do this, tell me, haha
Thank you! ❤️💙💜
Because it would probably be a bad idea to electrocute his friend, I would suggest he find some metal to heat up with his electricity instead. Extreme heat can also sterilize the metal, which may slightly reduce the high infection risk that comes with cauterization.
thinkin bout a whumpee bein stabbed with a heated cake tester- it'd be like a heated pin, but more long, and would probably cauterize the wound instantly if it was hot enough. Would be just small enough so that it wouldn't bleed anyway, though I'm guessing it would hurt like hell,,, also the chance of infection >:D
Ouuuuch! That’s a good one!
What does a scar caused by cauterization look like? And can cauterization cause any permanent damage (besides scarring)?
The biggest risks with cauterization are scarring, nerve damage and infection. I’ve never seen a cauterization wound afterward but I imagine since you’re literally burning the skin shut, it looks a lot like a puckered burn mark!
So I’m working on my Whumptober stuff (I’m using the prompt “field medicine”), and I’ve got a character who cauterizes a wound on his thigh to keep from bleeding out. What would that feel like to him? I’ve found out that some people could pass out from the pain that cauterizing a wound causes...
Cauterization is extremely painful, which makes it so it should only be a last resort. If he absolutely has to, he’ll need alcohol, a knife or some other kind of metal, and something to bite down on.
First he’ll have to deal with the awful burn of the alcohol when he pours it over the wound to clean it and wait for it to dry, while he’s still bleeding and while the metal is still heating up (assuming he has a fire that he’s put the metal in). Then he’ll have to apply the scalding metal to the wound in short bursts, burning it little by little until it’s sealed, and then pour more alcohol over it. There’s a huge risk of infection afterward too.
Basically just imagine how much it would hurt to be bleeding out and then have to burn yourself over and over, killing the tissue in your skin to stop the blood. That’s gonna hurt bad.
