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The nurse in me comes up with the darnedest questions and thoughts some times.
I was watching Rocky yesterday and this question kept me awake.
Many many years ago I asked someone about the role of the "cut man" in boxing. Generally my understanding from that is he was someone who had specialized skill in closing cuts a boxer sustained in the fight. He closed the cut bringing the edges together and stopping the bleeding so that it healed with minimum scarring.
All the images I say in TV movies (I watched black and white until the mid 80s) supported this explanation.
Well it finally hit me yesterday. Ok so I am slow on the uptake. Rocky's eye was swollen shut from the beating he took. He said "I can't see. I need to be able to see. Cut me."
Clearly Cutting was exactly what took place. Yea, it looked more like the actor squirted fake blood on his face (and of course that it what they did). Blood flowed to show he was actually being cut.
I thought about this. This is the conclusion I came to. The cut man cuts where there is bleeding that impairs function in order to release the pressure the bleeding causes so function will be restored. Yes I am guessing that he also uses styptic to stop the bleeding where he can as well. Anyway Rocky was able to open his eye in the next round.
Is there someone who has more insight than this into the cut man and what exactly he does and why.
Art Linkletter once had a TV show with a segment called Kids say the darnedest things. We could just call this nurses contemplate the darnedest things.
Thank you. The story Rocky was set in noveber 1975 to new years day 1976. Blood born illness were not an issue then. It is hard for some of the people here to realize that since many of them where not born.
No, I wasn't born yet at that time (shortly after though!), but I DO watch UFC and other MMA fights (in real life) regularly now. And bloodborn illnesses are an issue these days. I just think that with all that blood and both fighters with open cuts, that the risk would be high.
TiredMD - thank you. I love to watch the UFC, but that's as far as it goes. Can't say that I've ever taken the time to look things up. I seriously ask my husband almost every fight if they are checked for these diseases (drives him nuts!). Guess I always thought that with all that blood squirting all over the place (in oponents' eyes) and with both fighters having open cuts that the risk would be extreemly high - never thought of it as less of a risk than being in nursing. (needle sticks) Thanks for shedding the light on that! Really makes one think.:)
TiredMD - thank you. I love to watch the UFC, but that's as far as it goes. Can't say that I've ever taken the time to look things up. I seriously ask my husband almost every fight if they are checked for these diseases (drives him nuts!
). Guess I always thought that with all that blood squirting all over the place (in oponents' eyes) and with both fighters having open cuts that the risk would be extreemly high - never thought of it as less of a risk than being in nursing. (needle sticks) Thanks for shedding the light on that! Really makes one think.:)
Yeah, I see your point about the mucous membrane transmission risk. From what I recall though, the risk of transmitting viruses is pretty still pretty low with this type of exposure. Certainly lower than sex.
I don't know what the frequency of testing is, but I know it's regular and required for the boards to sanction it. There was a boxer a few years back who popped positive for HIV, and it made a bit of a stink because he did have a fight during the "window" when he probably had the virus but wasn't positive yet. Nobody caught it from him though.
They should do it on the same schedule as the Media stars. They get tested like very 2-4 weeks.
Tail docking is done a few days after birth. According to vets I've talked with and information written about it, pups are born with immature nervous systems, their Nervous system at birth is not even fully developed and they don't experience pain they way an older pup would. Docking is done usually before the pup is 5 days old. After that time, their nervous systems are rapidly developing and pain would be an issue. That's why any ethical breeder or vet would not dock the tail of a pup older than 4 or 5 days old. Many pups have their tails docked when they are asleep and they don't even flinch, let alone wake up. The same thing goes for cutting their dew claws, they don't feel it. It can somewhat be compaired to a newborn baby having their umbilical cord cut, they don't feel it.
Totally off topic, sorry, but....isn't this the same reasoning that was used for so long with circumcision? That newborns had immature nervous systems and therefore didn't feel pain? It isn't the same as cutting the umbilical cord--it doesn't have any nerves in it. The tail does. I have a hard time believing they sleep through it and don't cry; I've heard that about baby boys, too (that's what mothers were told in the 70s and 80s in the hospital in my home town), and I've heard docs say that about the EMLA cream--but all the circs I've ever been at, the babies screamed bloody murder unless the doc did a lidocaine injection.
My boxer was also docked; I didn't realize it was done so young so we really didn't have a say in it one way or another. I have no idea about the dew claw--I don't even know what it is, but now I'm going to have to google it and then check her out!
Sorry to go off topic, that was just so almost wor-for-word what we used to say about circing boys, I couldn't pass it up.
Google the docking of tails too. It does explain that puppies (which are very UNLIKE human babies) have immature nervous and sensory systems (ie born relatively immature, lacking full coats of fur, blind, deaf, very immobile and very helpless.) I HAVE seen pups sleep through it, I worked in a vets office during the summers as a kid. And I also witnessed a baby boys circ were he didn't scream bloody murder, he wasn't thrilled with it but he certainly wasn't screaming bloody murder. I didn't have my pups tails done, they were done by the breeders vet when they were there for their first checkup when they were a day or two old. Their dew claws were done at the same time. Not trying to have a debate, let's just agree to disagree
Dew claws are the claws that are farther up the paw, think of it like a thumb. .
Totally off topic, sorry, but....isn't this the same reasoning that was used for so long with circumcision? That newborns had immature nervous systems and therefore didn't feel pain?
Yes, it's true, babies feel pain. But I can tell you from personal experience that I don't recall the pain of my circumcision. No one who has had it done neo-natal remembers it. I know, it's fashionable now to worry about every little whimper and cry and fear that it will somehow emotionally scar the child later in life, but really, it's nothing.
Well, with that logic we could sexually assault them, too, because they won't remember it when they are older anyhow.
I remember some studies coming out a while back that infants who had been circumcised (as well as infants who had other painful procedures during their neonatal time period) had stronger reactions to pain later on in life. As well, the concerns about circumcision aren't just "will it hurt them;" but rather, is putting them at risk for hemorrhage, infection, and eating problems (and therefore jaundice) at 2 days post birth appropriate? Why do it at all, or if we do it, why not wait until they are a couple of weeks old, so that their immune system is stronger, they are less likely to have bleeding issues, and any eating issues and jaundice has resolved?
AAAAAnnnnd back on topic: My boxer totally had her dew claws removed, too. She has little scars on each leg, patches where the fur doesn't grow. I never really had noticed it before, I didn't realize it was on each leg, and I just thought she had injured herself as a puppy somehow. How would that affect her if we had chosen to show her? They must be okay with it, since virtually every boxer gets those removed. Or did whoever did it not do a good job? Does the fur usually grow back
AAAAAnnnnd back on topic: My boxer totally had her dew claws removed, too. She has little scars on each leg, patches where the fur doesn't grow. I never really had noticed it before, I didn't realize it was on each leg, and I just thought she had injured herself as a puppy somehow. How would that affect her if we had chosen to show her? They must be okay with it, since virtually every boxer gets those removed. Or did whoever did it not do a good job? Does the fur usually grow back
Having dew claws removed does not affect the ability to show the Boxer. My male boxer comes from a long line of winning champs (both sire and dam side) and neither his parens nor his grandparents had their dew claws. The fur probably won't grow back since where that dew claw was never had fur going on it anyway and now its scar tissue, scar tissue doesn't have hair/fur growing from it. Just like where females have their scars from being fixed, no fur will grow there.
My female (classic fawn w/black mask) has no fur growing from her dew claw site, neither does my white male. His scars and lack of fur in those tiny areas are much less noticable since the scarred area kind of matches his white fur..blends right in.
Agnus
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Thank you. The story Rocky was set in noveber 1975 to new years day 1976. Blood born illness were not an issue then. It is hard for some of the people here to realize that since many of them where not born.