Civil War Medicine

The Civil War created both crises and opportunities never before imagined by the medical professional. Doctors of the time were not prepared to deal with the staggering number and nature of wounds inflicted. And often, absolute necessity mothered many inventions, from new surgical instruments to the logistics of providing ambulance service on the battlefield. The brutal reality of the war pushed doctors to a new level of medical and surgical knowledge. In Civil War medicine 1861-1865, Dr. C. Keith Wilbur takes you on a detailed and fascinating tour through the medical history of this bloody and devastating war. Hundreds of illustrations, combined with well-researched and engaging text, tell the tale of the challenges presented to physicians with each new battle and the often-heroic ways those challenges were met. Discover and learn: how outmoded theories hobbled doctors in the field; the stories of the women who first entered a "man's army" as nurses; the details about the field hospitals, from the different kinds of bandages used to the diseases and wounds the doctors treated; and details of the day's surgical practices, medications, and anesthesia (or lack thereof).