During the Civil War, many of the techniques in medicine that we now take for granted had not yet be invented and the proper treatment for many communicable diseases was limited. The deaths in the hospitals were as numerous as the deaths on the battlefield. These facts made being wounded in battle or even just getting sick something to really worry about. Even very minor wounds were often fatal.
The prevailing idea of what was wrong with a soldier when he got sick was that his fluids were out of balance. So, the doctor would cut into the affected area and allowed it to bleed, draining…
