CASE HISTORY
Jennifer remembered the day she was shot,but not the day they had to remove her leg.She was camping in the middle of the Black Hills of South Dakota when an unseen hunter tried to shoot a deer.He missed his prey,but the errant bullet traveled a great distance and tore through Jennifer's thigh.In tremendous pain,Jennifer fashioned a tourniquet to stop the bleeding and then struggled two days to hike the ten miles back to civilization.By the time she arrived at a hospital,the wound and underlying muscle were clearly infected.The area around the wound was reddened and contained fluid-filled blisters,and parts were starting to turn black.The drainage coming from the wound contained pus and was foul smelling,all signs of gas gangrene.The surgical team worked to debride the dead tissue and placed her on intravenous antibiotic therapy (clindamycin).The microbiology laboratory reported finding Clostridium perfringens in the samples sent.Despite treatment,including hyperbaric oxygen,the infection continued spreading further up her leg.The surgeons finally decided that amputation was the only way to save her life.
Why might hyperbaric oxygen have been suggested as a treatment for Jennifer following the return of her lab results?

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The Answer of CASE HISTORY
Jennifer remembered the day she was shot,but not the day they had to remove her leg.She was camping in the middle of the Black Hills of South Dakota when an unseen hunter tried to shoot a deer.He missed his prey,but the errant bullet traveled a great distance and tore through Jennifer's thigh.In tremendous pain,Jennifer fashioned a tourniquet to stop the bleeding and then struggled two days to hike the ten miles back to civilization.By the time she arrived at a hospital,the wound and underlying muscle were clearly infected.The area around the wound was reddened and contained fluid-filled blisters,and parts were starting to turn black.The drainage coming from the wound contained pus and was foul smelling,all signs of gas gangrene.The surgical team worked to debride the dead tissue and placed her on intravenous antibiotic therapy (clindamycin).The microbiology laboratory reported finding Clostridium perfringens in the samples sent.Despite treatment,including hyperbaric oxygen,the infection continued spreading further up her leg.The surgeons finally decided that amputation was the only way to save her life.
Why might hyperbaric oxygen have been suggested as a treatment for Jennifer following the return of her lab results?

CASE HISTORY Jennifer Remembered the Day She Was Shot,but Not the Day