Fart sparks fire during surgery in Japan; patient seriously burnt

A patient who farted during a surgical procedure in Tokyo, Japan allegedly sparked a fire that seriously burned her, according to a hospital report.

The unnamed woman, in her 30s, was undergoing an operation in April at Tokyo Medical University Hospital that involved applying a laser to her cervix, when the laser ignited.

While the surgery was being carried out in the patient passed wind — sparking the fire, Japanese newspaper The Asahi Shimbun reports.

The blaze burned much of her body, including her waist and legs, according to a hospital report released on October 28.

The committee charged with investigating the incident ruled that there were no flammable materials nearby at the time of the surgery and that the equipment was operating normally, leading them to conclude that the women's flatulence was the cause.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/85982 ... usly-burnt

BULL!

Agreed. That must have been one hell of a fart!

Patients catching fire during operation procedure is not uncommon, and is usually the result of igniting medical prep fluids:

The Patient is on Fire! A Surgical Fires Primer

Virtually all operating room fires ignite on or in the patient, and about 10 surgical patient fires a year come to ECRI's attention through various medical and legal communications. These fires typically result in little damage to equipment, cause considerable injury to patients, and are a complete surprise to the staff. Some other potentially disastrous fires singe linen, hair, or instruments, but are quickly patted out and soon forgotten.

Fuels. A fuel is anything that can burn, including almost everything that comes in contact with patients, as well as the patients themselves. As shown in the "Fuels Commonly Encountered in Surgery" table below, fuels abound in the OR; note that, in addition to the many items that are generally known to burn, many other items that are not generally thought of as flammable are listed.

Some prepping agents and a few ointments required during surgery are volatile and extremely flammable, more so than many other fuels. For example, liquid alcohol from a wet, dripping prep can pool under the patient and generate vapors beneath the drapes for quite some time. Concentrated alcohol vapors trapped under drapes or above areas still wet with alcohol can be easily ignited by heat or sparks (see "Proper Prepping Techniques," below). Open bottles or basins containing volatile solutions (e.g., alcohol from suture packs, acetone degreaser) should be closed or removed from the sterile area as soon as possible after use.http://www.mdsr.ecri.org/summary/detail ... oc_id=8197

^^ I vote for the fart theory.

Username Taken wrote:^^ I vote for the fart theory.

I assume you're not expecting to have surgery done in Tokyo any time soon!

Korenco wrote
Patients catching fire during operation procedure is not uncommon, and is usually the result of igniting medical prep fluids:

I think 10 a year considering thousands upon thousands of procedures would indeed be highly uncommon.

Still a horrible incident for someone already suffering.

Luigi wrote:Korenco wrote
Patients catching fire during operation procedure is not uncommon, and is usually the result of igniting medical prep fluids:

I think 10 a year considering thousands upon bof procedures would indeed be highly uncommon.

Still a horrible incident for someone already suffering.

I thought about that when writing,but couldn't think of a more appropriate phrase at the time. I think "not unknown", or occurs sporadically, would have been better.