Medical Treatments in the WW (WAS Re: Disabilities in HP?)

[Juliet]

No: HPFGUIDX 60243

Sushi:
>>However, Professor Snape wasn't able to brew a potion to heal a dog 
bite. You'd think someone who can make Wolfsbane Potion would be 
capable of putting together something to heal soft tissue instantly. 
Either it requires wand-type magic he's not qualified to perform, or -
 more likely - it's a tricky situation given the 
malleability of the tissue. (This isn't to say it wasn't treated at 
all. He might have simply required a few days or hours for it to heal 
fully, or the nerve regeneration process might have been painful 
enough in itself to cause a limp.)>>


"She cleaned the cut with a dab of some purple liquid that smoked and 
stung, but then poked his shoulder with her wand, and he felt it heal 
instantly."(GOF, American Edition, Hardback, page 357)


Well, apparently cuts -can- be healed instantly(I recall this 
mentioned in PoA too..).  I would guess that Snape didn't know how to 
do it and didn't want to ask Madam Pomfrey.  So, he turns to Filch(I 
suppose he trusts him?) to fix him, and Filch not being trained in 
medicine could only bandage the leg.  

Or, for those that believe Dumbledore pulls the string, perhaps the 
Headmaster asked Snape to leave his leg that way, just to tug at 
Harry's suspicion and curiosity... :)


Also...

"One side of Cedric's face was covered in a thick orange paste, which 
was preumably mending his burn."(GOF)

Well, since we don't hear anything about all the females of Hogwarts 
being disapointed at Cedric's disfigurement from burn marks on his 
face, then I would assume that the orange paste(and Madam Pomfrey) 
did it's stuff and there were NO MARKS left behind.  

I think there are some remarks in canon(too tired to try and remember 
where that is exactly) about Charlie Weasley having burn marks that 
were physically visible-  I would venture that these were either more 
serious or not treated properly(and I'm betting on the second).


So, I'm thinking, the Wizards can handle soft tissue.  IF they know 
what they're doing.  Madam Pomfrey is the school nurse, so she 
obviously does.  I wouldn't expect an ordinary high school graduate 
to know how to medically treat a burn or a ripped up leg- which is 
why Snape can't treat himself.  But Madam Pomfrey, whom I would 
assume has had training for her position(she had to have learned it 
all somehwere), does know, so she can treat such injuries perfectly.  

~Aldrea, going off to find some sleep...