[William May]

They actually USE maggots for wound care in serious infection cases, and in severe burns. The maggots leave all the healing pink tissue, and only eat the dead and rotting tissue. They work REALLY well on delicate patients who can't have a more severe treatment. Google and read about "Maggots and wound care". These may have even kept this person from dying, because the maggots eat all the necrotic tissue before it can affect the patient.

I think they noticed this during the Crimean War. There were so many wounded that they couldn't care for them all, but the nurses noted that once patients got a good population of maggots on them, their wounds healed right up, and there was no secondary infection. They survived, while patients with no maggots would succumb to really bad infections, and just die, probably of septicemia. Maggots leave just pink healthy skin. Looks horrific, but heals really well. Nowadays, they keep a dressing over them, so people don't see them at work. But munching away, they are!