Do surgeons have a saying that "Time is Trauma"

December 13, 2016 2:24 PM

I vaguely remembering hearing once that surgeons have a saying that "Time is trauma." I can't remember if this refers to the delay in getting into surgery, or if it refers to the duration of the surgery. The google is failing me on this one - it keeps pushing a book about WMDs. Nurses and doctors of the green - is this a common saying?
posted by metaseeker to Health & Fitness (13 answers total)

Could it be "time is brain" for stroke treatment?
posted by Huffy Puffy at 2:38 PM on December 13, 2016 [3 favorites]

The American Stroke Association had a recent campaign with the slogan [when someone's having a stroke] "time lost is brain lost"; mentioning this as a possible origin of the memory.
posted by LobsterMitten at 2:38 PM on December 13, 2016 [1 favorite]

Time is Tissue is the go-to phrasing regarding sepsis according to my critical care nurse SO.
posted by Sternmeyer at 2:56 PM on December 13, 2016 [2 favorites]

There is the Golden hour.
posted by SyraCarol at 3:59 PM on December 13, 2016 [1 favorite]

""Time is trauma." – Equine surgeon Rolf Embertson. Dr. E, as he is known, said this when discussing the importance of getting a severely colicking horse into surgery as quickly as possible. "
posted by MonkeyToes at 4:14 PM on December 13, 2016 [2 favorites]

"Time is muscle" in the context of heart attack treatment. (Nursing student here.)
posted by snorkmaiden at 4:17 PM on December 13, 2016 [2 favorites]

I know it as "time, trash, tissue trauma". Meaning you have to watch your time (don't rush, but don't be pokey), don't leave trash in the surgery site, and be aware of how you are handling your tissues so you don't cause trauma. (veterinarian here)
posted by bolognius maximus at 6:24 PM on December 13, 2016 [1 favorite]

I've worked in a Trauma ICU as an RN for almost 5 years at a large, urban, Level I trauma center and FWIW I've never heard anyone say this.

Thoughts on what it could refer to:
- the "golden hour" (linked above)
- the current preference for/research supporting a "scoop and run" vs a "stay and play" approach in prehospital care
- the current practice of getting in and out quickly during an ex-lap instead of poking around trying to fix each and every little tear and bleed. Open them up, stabilize the bleed, close them up and send them on their way.
posted by pecanpies at 6:51 PM on December 13, 2016 [2 favorites]

(And I realize that saying is probably referring to general tissue trauma, not the trauma patient population - I'm just answering it from my perspective/experience)
posted by pecanpies at 6:52 PM on December 13, 2016 [1 favorite]

I worked several years in the OR at two trauma centers in different states, and never heard this particular saying.
posted by moira at 7:21 PM on December 13, 2016 [1 favorite]

I've heard this phrase before, or something very like it. It was during an emergency medicine course aimed at non-practitioners who would be traveling to places with relatively high levels of societal violence and conflict, and was taught by military medics, not MDs. It referred to the amount of time before somebody received medical treatment and was taught to us in conjunction with discussion of the golden hour.
posted by exutima at 10:05 PM on December 13, 2016 [1 favorite]

If you watched the West Wing as obsessively as I did, you may remember it from there. Season 6, Episode 3:

ABBEY
He was unconscious for a long time. It's a miracle he has brain function. Every
minute damages the heart muscle more.

C.J.
What kind of damage?

ABBEY
They don't know yet.

TOBY
Will they operate?

ABBEY
They don't know yet.

BARTLET
These are supposed to be the best thoracic surgeons in the world: what the
hell do they know?

ABBEY
That time is muscle, Jed. They're going to do everything they can.

posted by kjs4 at 4:43 PM on December 14, 2016 [1 favorite]

As an extremity surgeon, "time is tissue" is a common refrain with amputations, if replantation is being considered. As you can see above, other variations exist for different specialties.
posted by karlos at 6:20 PM on December 14, 2016 [1 favorite]