A Cargile membrane was a sterile
membrane made from the
peritoneum of the
ox, and was the first commercially available adhesion barrier. Its first reported use was in 1905. It was used in abdominal surgery to interpose between raw surfaces and thus prevent the formation of
adhesions. It was also used to envelop freshly sutured nerves or
tendons, and to protect wounds.
It was designed primarily to cover surfaces over which peritoneum has been removed, especially where a sterile membrane would lessen the formation of adhesion. It was available in the size of 4 × 6 inches, and sometimes used as packaging or a protective sheath.
It was named for American surgeon
Charles H. Cargile (1853–1930),
who first used it ca. 1900, according to
Dorland's Medical Dictionary.
References
External links
1908 NY Times story
History of surgery
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