RT Journal
A1 Rutkow IM
T1 A surgical sponge and medical malpractice in 1856
JF Archives of Surgery
JO Archives of Surgery
YR 1999
FD October 1
VO 134
IS 10
SP 1158
OP 1158
DO 10.1001/archsurg.134.10.1158
UL http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/archsurg.134.10.1158
AB 
King of William was shot by James Casey, a corrupt politician, in the left side of the chest. King of William was immediately taken to his office at the Pacific Express, which ultimately became his death chamber, as tens of physicians manually explored the wound and in a cacophony of divided opinion decided to have a sponge inserted in the bullet entrance site to tamponade further bleeding. Almost immediately, cries of surgical malpractice were initiated by Richard Beverly Cole (1829-1901), a physician who had been a close friend of King of William, against the many other medical men involved in the management of the case, particularly Hugh Hughes Toland (1806-1880), the state's best known surgeon.