Frozen extremes

We get a lot of requests for amputation stories, so today we’ve got one, but be warned, this one is pretty intense.

While I don’t know the reasons behind it, Tegumai_B decided to remove his lower left leg.  Typically the types of amputation we see on ModBlog are small digit removals, which are done at home.  However with the loss of a large potion of a limb, Tegumai_B needed the help of doctors.  Of course, going up to a doctor and asking them to remove your limb probably won’t work, so Tegumai_B used his own method of getting his leg amputated.

To start with, he spent most of a day with his foot surrounded by dry ice.  To see what happened next, you’ll have to keep on reading.

Once he removed his foot from the dry ice, it was off to the hospital where he had his foot examined by a doctor.

Sitting in an examination room. My foot is the color and texture of frozen chicken. The red bit looks nasty, but doesn’t hurt.

After being admitted, his foot began to swell up.

Skin of the entire frozen area has filled with fluid. It’s like wearing a rubber glove full of water. Still doesn’t hurt.

You can see how his toes have already started to turn black.  At this point, surgery is the only option as leaving his foot intact could potentially kill him.  The next step of course is the surgery.

Back in the ward. Two drains in, which were removed the next day.

5 weeks after the stitches were removed, here’s how the leg looked.

5 weeks post-op. No issues or infections then or now. All done.

It’s now been 5 years since the amputation, and Tegumai_B is happy with the results.

Just a photo of my stump, for ‘proof of identity’ purposes. Amazing how many ‘amputees’ are out there with the same photos 😉 About 5 years post-op.

To see more of his incredible journey, check out the amputation gallery on BME.

Stretched Lobes and Frostbite: A Cautionary Tale


Be warned: This is a pretty grisly story, and the photos after the jump are not pretty. We’ll let the gentleman pictured above take it away:

“It’s a chilly Saturday morning and snowboarding sounded like precisely what the day needed. Unfortunatly, the closest New Hampshire mountain was a bone chilling -14 degrees with a 30 mph wind chill. But did this stop me? Nahhh. I packed up and a friend and I headed up to good ole NH for some morning/afternoon shredding.

“After approximately five or six hours of being blasted in the face with negative-degree weather, I thought not feeling my ears was a side effect of just being a bit under-dressed for the occasion — no big deal …

“VERY BIG DEAL. Getting home, I noticed my lobes — or whatever skin I had from my 1 1/4″ stretched lobes — was frozen solid. Literally, to the touch, frozen, and to make it better? The bottom skin was black. So I, being the smart person I am, decided to just go sleep and let them defrost. Wrong again. I woke up a few hours later and noticed some bleeding, some liquid discharge, and some ripping. Forcing the plug out was no easy task, by any means; they were basically frozen to my skin. Finally, after getting them both off, I popped a seemingly gross mid-sized bubble of liquidy stuff and the skin just peeled off like a grape … revealing fresh, bare, bleeding skin.

“Noticing a pattern here, I decided to go to the ER and try to get Medicare, because in this situation, of course, I don’t have any insurance. That’d be ridiculous, right? All the nurses were shocked my earlobes were still attached, as if they would’ve just fallen right off my face for some reason. Basically, the worst day ever. I am not allowed to wear any earrings for about three months to see if anything heals itself or if they have to re-construct or just cut the lobe off.

Don’t go outside and risk life and — literally — limb. Be cautious. That’s my moral for this story.