Arrow Wound to the Thigh
Hi there. I just recently started writing a series of books and I've run into some questions that I can't seem to answer, even with Google's help.
The setting:
The story takes place in a fantasy world that is set in a Viking like time period. So basically, no modern medicine and a pretty slim understanding of it. There's no magic or anything along those lines. Think medieval.
The situation:
The main character is a 17-18 year old girl, who is healthy and able. We'll call her G. She is accompanied by an 18-19 yr boy who we'll call B. G gets shot with a bow and arrow as they try and escape a city under attack. B shoots the guy and pulls G to safety and examines her wounds. I originally wanted B to remove the arrow then and there so I didn't have to worry about it later. But in research I actually found an article that says "Battle Wounds: Never Pull an Arrow Out of a Body" so that might be a problem.... B also has very, very, limited knowledge of medicine, but G is a decent healer. I thought of having her advise him on what to do with the arrow and such.
They eventually escape the city with B carrying her. They head for safety to a camp a day and half* walk from the city. G insists she can care for her own wound and realizes it's getting worse and is infected, but resolves she can make it and decides not to worry B.
They arrive to an empty clearing with the camp obviously moved. B is worried but knows there is an agreed upon rendezvous that is about two* days walk away. Before they can continue on G collapses. B waits a day trying to lower her fever with cold water (again he has no idea what to do) before B gets them captured so that G can have limited care. Fast forward B escapes and gets them to safety at the rendezvous point, where there are field trained healers who have as much access as possible to medicine under the circumstances of war.
Side note: G cannot, under any circumstances, die, due to her being essential to the plot, but she has to get pretty close. I don't want anything that will hurt her in the long run, a limp I'm pretty okay with as long as she can run, jump ect.
I know I'm asking a lot, and if it just medically can't be done, I'll just go back to the drawing board and maybe have someone throw a knife at her instead, or something. I'll figure it out.
*Unsure of the time frame
The questions:
1. Is the thigh a good, plausible, she's not going to die, place for the arrow to hit?
2. Would it be better for the arrow to go cleanly through or not? (Getting lodged in the bone isn't an option, too tricky.)
3. Should B remove the arrow immediately (for plot purposes I would rather it be removed if it's realistic that G won't die), and if yes then how? If no then what should he do?
4. Would G be able to walk soon after getting shot?
5. What is the rate that infection will take hold? Depending on if the arrow is removed or not.
6. At what time frame will G go completely unconscious after the infection sets in? I would like to have her be pretty out of it before B gets them captured due to her probably resisting the plan.
7. How long does G have before she just up and dies? How long before the infection does things that can't be reversed? Ex: Lost limbs
8. What would the enemy do to keep her from dying but at the same time she isn't getting better? (They are just barely keeping her alive because of an agreement with B.)
9. And if all of this is plausible, what would the healers do to treat what she comes stumbling back to them with?
I know people have asked similar questions to mine on this forum but those threads haven't given me the exact answers I need.
What I've Googled:
Infected arrow wound
Infection rate of an arrow wound
Infected wound
Arrow wound
Unconsciousness from infection
Sepsis
Septic shock
I've honestly had trouble finding any useful combinations of terms to search and I'm running out of ideas.
I apologize if I've missed something or done something wrong in this post, it's my first time posting here and I hope everything is in order. Sorry for the length, I'm just excited that I could possibly find some conclusive answers.
Thank you in advance to anyone who responds.
The setting:
The story takes place in a fantasy world that is set in a Viking like time period. So basically, no modern medicine and a pretty slim understanding of it. There's no magic or anything along those lines. Think medieval.
The situation:
The main character is a 17-18 year old girl, who is healthy and able. We'll call her G. She is accompanied by an 18-19 yr boy who we'll call B. G gets shot with a bow and arrow as they try and escape a city under attack. B shoots the guy and pulls G to safety and examines her wounds. I originally wanted B to remove the arrow then and there so I didn't have to worry about it later. But in research I actually found an article that says "Battle Wounds: Never Pull an Arrow Out of a Body" so that might be a problem.... B also has very, very, limited knowledge of medicine, but G is a decent healer. I thought of having her advise him on what to do with the arrow and such.
They eventually escape the city with B carrying her. They head for safety to a camp a day and half* walk from the city. G insists she can care for her own wound and realizes it's getting worse and is infected, but resolves she can make it and decides not to worry B.
They arrive to an empty clearing with the camp obviously moved. B is worried but knows there is an agreed upon rendezvous that is about two* days walk away. Before they can continue on G collapses. B waits a day trying to lower her fever with cold water (again he has no idea what to do) before B gets them captured so that G can have limited care. Fast forward B escapes and gets them to safety at the rendezvous point, where there are field trained healers who have as much access as possible to medicine under the circumstances of war.
Side note: G cannot, under any circumstances, die, due to her being essential to the plot, but she has to get pretty close. I don't want anything that will hurt her in the long run, a limp I'm pretty okay with as long as she can run, jump ect.
I know I'm asking a lot, and if it just medically can't be done, I'll just go back to the drawing board and maybe have someone throw a knife at her instead, or something. I'll figure it out.
*Unsure of the time frame
The questions:
1. Is the thigh a good, plausible, she's not going to die, place for the arrow to hit?
2. Would it be better for the arrow to go cleanly through or not? (Getting lodged in the bone isn't an option, too tricky.)
3. Should B remove the arrow immediately (for plot purposes I would rather it be removed if it's realistic that G won't die), and if yes then how? If no then what should he do?
4. Would G be able to walk soon after getting shot?
5. What is the rate that infection will take hold? Depending on if the arrow is removed or not.
6. At what time frame will G go completely unconscious after the infection sets in? I would like to have her be pretty out of it before B gets them captured due to her probably resisting the plan.
7. How long does G have before she just up and dies? How long before the infection does things that can't be reversed? Ex: Lost limbs
8. What would the enemy do to keep her from dying but at the same time she isn't getting better? (They are just barely keeping her alive because of an agreement with B.)
9. And if all of this is plausible, what would the healers do to treat what she comes stumbling back to them with?
I know people have asked similar questions to mine on this forum but those threads haven't given me the exact answers I need.
What I've Googled:
Infected arrow wound
Infection rate of an arrow wound
Infected wound
Arrow wound
Unconsciousness from infection
Sepsis
Septic shock
I've honestly had trouble finding any useful combinations of terms to search and I'm running out of ideas.
I apologize if I've missed something or done something wrong in this post, it's my first time posting here and I hope everything is in order. Sorry for the length, I'm just excited that I could possibly find some conclusive answers.
Thank you in advance to anyone who responds.