Amputation – Indications and techniques during Napoleonic Empire

Amputation is a surgical procedure that dates back some 40,000 years. Yet, throughout Antiquity and the Middle Ages, it remained an episodic act. It was not until the religious wars of the 16th century that it became more widespread, but it was during the wars of the French Revolution and, above all, the Napoleonic campaigns that this ‘life-saving’ operation was performed on a much larger scale. In this presentation, we’ll examine the indications for amputation of the upper and lower limbs, the techniques employed on the battlefields of the Emperor’s armies, as well as the postoperative outcomes.