Introduction to the Barbed Sutures Supplement:The Expanding Applications of Barbed Sutures

摘要

In 1881, Alexander Graham Bell invented what arguably could be called the first metal detector. President James Garfield had been shot. His doctors needed to locate the bullet that was lodged in his chest, but the president already had lost a significant amount of blood. Doctors therefore were reluctant to perform manual exploration. Bell's invention seemed the best hope. What no one realized at the time was that the metal springs in the mattress upon which the president lay would render Bell's metal detector ineffective. Garfield ultimately died from his wounds. The metal detector endured. Through the work of later inventors, it evolved into a device serving a variety of important functions, most notably helping to ensure our safety in public places.