I think [the response give by] Dr. Davis is correct. In general, when you are in a place where you can obtain medical attention LEAVE THE ARROW ALONE (or the knife, or the ……). It could not only be tamponading a bleeding source, but removal – aside from the issue of tamponade – may cause further, and more significant, damage.
But if you are, say in a place with no health care, all bets are off. And there, my friend, you will have to use your best judgement. And this best judgement would relate to the anatomic site of the injury. So, an arrow deeply embedded into the chest is different that one in the thigh; the former more dangerous than the latter.
I hope this helps.
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About AJ Layon
AJ Layon was, for 28 years, at the University of Florida College of Medicine, in the Division of Critical Care Medicine, in Gainesville, FL. For the approximately 10 years until September 2011, he was Professor and Chief of Critical Care Medicine at UF; In September of 2011 he became System Director and Co-Chairman of Critical Care Medicine in PA; this ended in 2017. He served as a Physician in the Surgical Group with Médecins sans Frontières (MSF, Doctors without Borders) through 2018 and is presently an intensivist in Florida, struggling through the SARS-CoV-2 crisis.
While his interests are primarily related to health care, health care reform, and ethical issues, as a citizen of our United States and our world, he will occasionally opine on issues of our "time and destiny". Follow on Twitter @ajlayon
