Note 43 — Chapter XXXVI · INJURIES AND SURGICAL DISEASES OF THE HEAD. (continued 2)

In March, 1906, Cushing informed me that his present routine in effecting such drainage was to make a laminectomy and expose the spinal canal from the rear, then to do a laparotomy, and, exposing the bodies of the vertebræ, pass through from in front backward a silver tube, whose end should reach into the spinal canal, draining it into the abdominal cavity, the posterior wound being always snugly closed. The spinal canal is thus exposed in order to ensure the accurate performance of the other part of the operation.