Leonid Rogozov Performed His Own Antarctic Appendectomy
Most people won't visit Antarctica, and for good cause. The average temperature in April through September of 2021 was -61 Celsius, or -78 Fahrenheit. That is essentially death at a certain temperature. Even before it gets that cold, antifreeze will begin to freeze. As a result, when people do travel to the South Pole, it's often to spend a long time at a research facility with a limited group of colleagues and little prospect of timely communication with the outside world.
The lone physician working at the Antarctic Novolazarevskaya Station in 1961 was Leonid Rogozov. Rogozov was suffering from a severe illness in April, and the ship that would return them to Russia wouldn't arrive for another year. He needed aid right away because the 36-day journey had already taken 36 days. He was the only man qualified to remove his appendix, and he needed it.
Rogozov had a couple options. Either he would perish or he would conduct the operation. One of his coworkers was assigned the duty of holding a mirror, so he could see what he was doing. He had several of his colleagues work as nurses. He had a local anesthetic to numb the skin of his stomach, but he wouldn't be able to use any painkillers once he was inside.
He found it extremely difficult to adjust the mirror, so he performed the procedure blindly while relying only on his sense of touch. The organ, which was on the verge of burst, was removed after two hours of operation in his own belly despite multiple close calls with fainting. After two weeks, he returned to his job.
