# Getting shot in the arm with an arrow



## Gryphos (Jan 25, 2016)

Simple question: what would be the implications of getting shot through the forearm with an arrow? More specifically, how would you go about removing it (if removing it is the right thing to do)? And how would said person's use of that arm be affected in the near future?


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## skip.knox (Jan 25, 2016)

I have 16thc illustrations of surgeons (armies usually hired barber-surgeons) in the field setting bones or treating wounds. One shows an arrow in a leg. The surgeon has a knife. I believe the proper technique would be to remove the arrow and the head trying to avoid damage to tissues as much as possible, which often meant cutting. Such a procedure was not always possible and sometimes amputation was the only solution.


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## scribbler (Jan 25, 2016)

Well, I've never been shot with an arrow, but from what I've read you're supposed to leave the arrow in the wound.  The arrow acts like a cork in a wine bottle and prevents the wound from bleeding.  However, when it's time to remove it, if the arrow has penetrated completely through the arm, you snap off the arrow head and pull the shaft back out through the wound.


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## Jerseydevil (Jan 26, 2016)

Lots to say here so bear with me:
There are many factors here, such as the range, type of bow, the type of arrowhead, and how it struck. A broad head arrow will do more damage when it is pulled out, so the surgeon must cut and pry away the flesh around it and remove it. If it was a bodkin point, this is less of an issue. 
If the arrow struck the flesh only, it may heal with minimal scarring, though the arm will be out of action for some time. The muscles that control the grip of the hand are in the forearm, so grasping things may be difficult. Also, the nerves that control the hand are in the forearm, and if struck the pain is excruciating (yes, it happened to me) and it may cause permanent damage which may either restrict movement in the hand if not completely disable it permanently.  There is also the possibility that the arrow may hit and sever the radial and/or ulnar arteries, as well as the basilic and/or the cephalic vein, which will cause the person to bleed out and die if a tourniquet is not applied, and a tourniquet almost always means the loss of that limb. The point of a broad head is to sever as many blood vessels as possible so the target bleeds out, and every movement causes the arrowhead to shift, furthering the damage.   I recommend looking up the exact veins and tendons for specific details. 
There is also the issue of bone damage. An arrow from a high poundage bow, like an English longbow, hits with more force than a low caliber bullet. It can shatter a bone at close range, and interestingly enough may become embedded in the bone itself. If I recall correctly, Henry V of England (the "We happy few, we band of brothers" guy) was shot in the face with an arrow and the doctor had to create a new tool that looks like a pair of pliers to extract it. In addition to these factors, there is also the issue of infection afterwards, which historically killed more people than direct damage.
In short, the best case scenario is that the person will be out of action for a few weeks to a month or so, though a broken bone, amputation, nerve damage, and death may also be possible.


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## Gryphos (Jan 29, 2016)

Let's work with a best-case scenario. The arrow didn't get lodged in the bone, but it did cause serious damage to it and also the tendons and stuff. One of her companions is a medical expert, so the extraction of the arrow would be competently done. I'll have it so this wound makes her basically unable to use her right hand for the rest of the story, thus making her unable to fight.

Cool stuff.


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## koen-hagens (Mar 17, 2016)

One note, when you pull out the arrow, wich in most scenarios needs to be done ASAP to treat the wound to make sure it doesn't get infected, but you need to snap of the back of the arrow as close to the wound and pull it trough in the same direction as it went in, as that will do less damage than pulling it backwards out.

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## Malik (Mar 17, 2016)

The trope about arrows sticking out of people is a Hollywood creation so that the audience can know what happened. I've put a broadhead on a wooden arrow through a deer's shoulderblade and out the far side with a 40-lb. bow. It split the near-side shoulderblade, missed the far-side shoulder, and kept going right through into the underbrush on the other side.

If the arrow doesn't have to penetrate armor, it will pass right through a human being pretty much anywhere it hits short of the femur or maybe the hip or shoulderblade. Maybe. I've seen arrows on bigger bows split ribs and pass through on a 700-lb. elk.

If it doesn't have to penetrate armor and it hits the bone, it would fracture the bone, possibly leaving an open (compound) fracture, or even shatter the bone into several pieces as it passed through. There would be no need for extraction. Putting the pieces back into order would be a trick, though.

It will hit your protagonist so fast that he literally won't know what happened unless he saw the shooter in advance; he'll just have a huge gushing hole in his arm. And a useless arm. And a whole big set of problems unless he has a tourniquet handy.

If he's wearing armor, then ick. If it's mail, the rings will twist up around the arrow (fletchings are not wings; the fletchings provide spin, which stabilizes the arrow) and jam into the wound along with the padding underneath. All the padding will have to be cleaned and picked out of the wound to avoid sepsis. That's gonna smart. If it's an iron vambrace, then you'd need to remove the arrow first, then get the wrecked armor piece off (the metal may be jammed into the skin and it might be bent beyond function) without him bleeding out.

EDIT: In addition, unless it was a graze, or a meat hit through a burly upper arm that missed the artery, they'd lose the arm or at least functionality, probably permanently. If the artery is compromised, then unless you have the ability to do a graft, the arm is lost below that; you'd need to amputate at the injury site.

A hit to the forearm, even a graze, could easily result in destroyed tendons and loss of hand function. Wiggle your fingers and look at your elbow. Those. 

A meat hit through the biceps or triceps will likely impair function permanently unless the muscle is sutured.

A deep wound along the length of the underside of the forearm is the stuff of suicides; you'll bleed out really fast unless you get a tourniquet on it or pack it off. The artery is really close to the surface right there.

Of course, a good wizard / shaman / healer / whatever can hand-wave any of this stuff away. 

Have fun, now.


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