What if medicine were more advanced during the American Civil War? Say by even just a decade, because the things you would see in just the last few years of the 1860s and the 1870s included cleanliness and antiseptic surgery, and germ theory.
I'm not sure how much of a difference it would make seeing as blood transfusions and antibiotics were still several decades away, as well as x-ray technology. The weapons and tactics would also complicate matters due to the extreme injuries and the inability to evacuate casualties during formation battles.
Also, most casualties were from disease and other non-combat related causes.
True, however there were still a LOT of combat related injuries many of which got infected. Antiseptics would have saved a lot of limbs and lives.
Subsonic minie balls and cannon shrapnel tended to get all kinds of things into wounds such as rust, dirt, and even the soldier's own uniform. Minie balls also tended to cause horrific exploding injuries when they hit, and with the state of medicine at the time any bones that were hit by such a round would likely force an amputation because it would be impossible to put them back together.
The supersonic rounds that were introduced later on create much cleaner injuries, both in terms of debris and in terms of pathways. That's with respect to the full metal jacket rounds that are legal for use in international conflict, the various semi-jacketed and hollow point rounds that are used for hunting, police, and self-defense leave exit wounds even more horrific than minie balls.
Subsonic minie balls and cannon shrapnel tended to get all kinds of things into wounds such as rust, dirt, and even the soldier's own uniform. Minie balls also tended to cause horrific exploding injuries when they hit, and with the state of medicine at the time any bones that were hit by such a round would likely force an amputation because it would be impossible to put them back together.
The supersonic rounds that were introduced later on create much cleaner injuries, both in terms of debris and in terms of pathways. That's with respect to the full metal jacket rounds that are legal for use in international conflict, the various semi-jacketed and hollow point rounds that are used for hunting, police, and self-defense leave exit wounds even more horrific than minie balls.
Just off topic for a little while. Are you saying that the (US?) armed forces has rules/laws that those who may confront the public do not have to obey?
If so that is very F ed up, so you could have more chance of living if you are shot by someone, say from, ISIS than a cop???
This should go in chat as a new subject!
disclaimer: retired military/academic MD currently getting history PhD with research topic history of military medicine.
If you move up medical technology/knowledge by 15-20 years you get the germ theory of medicine (knowing that infections are caused by micro-organisms) pretty well established and the beginnings of clinical bacteriology. Using antiseptic techniques in wound care, nursing, and surgery (not aseptic which comes a little later) will reduce the almost 100% rate of wound infections, and other conditions such as hospital gangrene. Rules about sanitation were in place in CW Army Regulations, but were beefed up later on - the key thing is to get them enforced (OTL the US had massive deaths from disease in training camps in the USA during the Spanish-American War due to ignoring sanitation rules by volunteer units in spite of exact knowledge about what caused typhoid & how to prevent it).
You will see better surgical techniques (over & above reduction in infection) but you'll still see a lot of amputations as techniques for limb salvage of CW weapon wounds was not there in 1880 although reduced infections will save a fair number of limbs.
Anesthesia was in widespread use during the CW (85% chloroform in the Union Army) and except for very minor procedures, only the lack of supplies (chloroform, ether) primarily on the CSA side led to surgery without anesthesia. Very few deaths were listed as due to anesthetic complications - reasons are medical/technical. Antibiotics were a 20th century item - salvarsan (aresenical for syphilis) early 20th century, sulfa drugs 20s/30s, penicillin early 1940s.
Remember ~ 2/3 of CW deaths were due to disease not wounding including post wound infection. There is lots of data on all this.
disclaimer: retired military/academic MD currently getting history PhD with research topic history of military medicine.
Partly because the sort of rounds to which the military is restricted are more likely to pass through obstacles (including their targets) and harm innocent bystanders than bullets that fragment as soon as they hit something reasonably solid are...yes, I knew there were laws, for armed forces, but thought why the hell they aren't the same for law enforcement.