Ewww....
A few cases I have seen as a paramedic:

21 year old female fell through plate glass window and amongst other injuries she sliced off her right nipple. I asked where it was and she opened her mouth to show me she had been protecting it with her saliva. Reattached but apparently with loss of sensitivity.

Male cyclist vs car – cyclist bit through the front third of his tongue severing it. I found it on the road (he was unconscious). It was reattached and I suspect it screwed up his taste buds and ability to French kiss or give oral. Tragic indeed.

Torn scrotum and severed testicle on man who kicked a police dog. The police dog did the severing. Luckily the dog didn’t swallow.

Many “deglovings” - I hate these. This is where (for example) an unrestrained child suddenly goes through a windscreen causing the scalp/head skin/facial skin to be removed/skinned/peeled as it goes through the glass. (Seatbelt your kids please.)

A psychiatric patient who deliberately cut off his ear with a razor and on my arrival was holding it to the TV speaker. Sewn back on under protest.

A bikie chick who lost a leg – her partner was equally injured in the same accident but there was a happy ending. He gave up his outlaw bikie lifestyle, married her and now loves to crack jokes about their coital efforts. His favourite line is “C’mon baby, spread your leg!” Lovely people.

Only been to one intentional decapitation – severed by a train and no, they didn’t sew it back on. Train driver near lost his mind, poor bastard.

Total loss of all skin on a burns patient (suicide) who had 100% 3rd degree (full thickness) burns. Really strange appearance. Hard to describe. Died of course, but not straight away, and he did talk to me for a brief time which was a bit unnerving.

And then you get the 'real emergency' cases such as the young lady who phoned 000 (911/999) for a broken fingernail. I needed counselling after the trauma of that one...


Heaps more, but that’s enough length for now. Unless of course you want to sew it back on.

(edit: Undercovercarrot - thanks, loved the link!)
(emadex thinks the world will end on, Sun 4 Jun 2006, 16:58, Reply)