Surgery in the early 19th century tended to be:

• A. Very dirty with poor survival due to sepsis
• B. Short procedures with low mortality
• C. Clean and safe
• D. No anesthesia used

Answer: (A)

In the early 19th century, infection after surgery determined outcomes. Operating rooms were dirty, instruments unsterilized, and wound care was rudimentary, so bacteria easily entered the wound and led to sepsis. This is why survival was very poor despite any pain relief or speed of the operation. Anesthesia hadn’t become widespread yet, but the central issue was the lack of aseptic technique, not the absence of anesthesia. The other statements don’t fit because procedures were not reliably short with low mortality, and surgery was not clean and safe given the infection risk.