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Article snippet: Representative Steve Scalise, wounded by a gunman on a baseball field on Wednesday, is likely to endure multiple operations as surgeons try to stanch bleeding and repair the damage to his internal organs. Officials at MedStar Washington Hospital Center said that the bullet, fired from a rifle, entered Mr. Scalise’s left hip and tore across his pelvis, cracking bones and injuring internal organs. On Thursday, he underwent a second surgery for internal injuries and a broken leg. Doctors said his condition was critical but improving. He is expected to remain in the hospital “for some time,” according to a hospital statement released Thursday night. It’s the kind of trouble trauma surgeons see often, and they have learned though bitter experience how best to deal with it. The first priority is to operate to stop the bleeding and control any contamination that might arise from something like a torn intestine. Afterward, hospital staff members wheel the patient from the operating room straight to intensive care, often with the abdomen still open. The next steps are to seal small blood vessels that may be torn and then to operate, if necessary, to permanently repair damage. A gunshot victim may undergo two to 10 operations, said Dr. Jeremy Cannon, a trauma surgeon at the University of Pennsylvania, and may remain in the hospital anywhere from days to several months. Still, the results are far better than in the old days, before the early 1990s, when surgeons tried to do... Link to the full article to read more