In search of the best way to treat frostbite saving digits and limbs
07 March 2020
Cold Snap
Doctors often compare notes, sharing their experiences and 'best practice' on how to treat diseases. When cases are rare, or spread over the globe, published medical reviews help to bring international findings together, looking for patterns in the pooled information that might lead to better treatments. A recent review on frostbite suggests injection with tissue plasminogen activator, a protein involving in reducing blood clots, has saved many digits from amputation, including the top two fingers of this 54-year old man. Clotting is one by-product of the body’s response to ice crystals formed inside blood vessels (seen here in black) – so it’s no surprise that heparin, a drug that helps 'thin' the blood, also helped in his treatment. Combination treatments like these may help doctors prepare for the ongoing rise in cold injury cases.
Written by
- Image from work by John Lee and Mikhail C. S. S. Higgins
- Department of Radiology, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
- Image copyright held by the American Journal of Roentgenology
- Research published in the American Journal of Roentgenology, April 2020
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BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.
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