Is it possible that it could have worked? (Spoilers)
One thing I've been wondering is if you cut off Lee's arm, did he really die because he was too infected or did cutting off the arm really work and the reason he died was due to blood loss. Think about it: Lee doesn't have his blackouts if you cut off his arm which is strange if he really was too infected for it to be effective. If he would have died anyway, he should had blackouts anyway if he was too far gone to be saved by amputation. Furthermore, nobody in the group is a doctor and all that was done to his wound was bandage it. Since amputations need proper care to be dealt with and the wound was still bleeding through, he would have suffered blood loss. Also, another thing I seemed to notice was that Lee looked more like a walker in playthroughs where he kept his arm while he just looked paler if he cut his arm off. Furthermore, in the comics, I think Dale didn't have his leg cut off immediately and he managed to survive. Therefore, I'm in the belief that Lee could have survived if he cut off his arm and he managed to survive through the blood loss.
Comments
If this is true, it means that Pete might survive. Pete even says while suggesting to cut off Clem's arm that it worked for a cousin of him.
He didn't survived because he cut his arm too late. You need to cut it moments after the bite, he did it too late.
Lee either died of two things. Either the infection because he was too late or blood loss. Basically all they did was cut it off, they didn't treat it in anyway except bandage it. And on the scene on the roof you can see the bandaging wasn't very well done since it drips blood.
Actually the one time it works in the comics the character actually dosnt amputate quickly. (still within the hour though). However someone who is bitten on the arm and instantly gets amputated still dies from the bite.
I think it varies on the area and the individual, the leg takes a lot longer for blood to flow so maybe thats why.
I think he died to blood loss. He looks visibly more zombie-like if you don't cut off his arm in the final scene.
Clem probably thinks it was the infection rather than blood loss though, since she said it "never works." It could work if the bleeding was stopped properly.
Amputation is a gamble. Even if you immediately cut off the bitten limb, the infection spreads through the body instantly after the bite, so the more time you take, the lower the chances of survival you have. But note that, by infection I mean the all kinds of bacteria that are transferred from the bite, not the zombie pathogen itself (which everyone is already infected by it). These bacteria are highly resistant to common antibiotics and considered lethal without proper and immidiate medica treatment. Also, the amputation needs to be done in a sterile enviroment or else the wound might be exposed to further infection. Though the highest risk of amputation is ofcourse the blood loss. Anyway, I believe Lee most likely died due to the infection (with or without ampuation). He looks 'healthier' if he cuts of the arm, but just not enough to save his life I'm afraid.
I suppose Pete will determine if it really was blood loss that killed Lee if it cut off his arm. If he manages to survive, it will kind of support the face that Lee would have survived if he cut off his arm and got proper medical care.
He died of blood loss or his infection. The fact that he passes out that far after his amputation and nowhere else shows that he lost too much blood to go on. He needed proper medical care to survive at that point. He was dead at that point since he couldn't get a blood transfusion for the blood he lost.
Well if you go to wikipedia, It says that if you cut off his arm he does in fact die out of "Blood Loss" , Which is why some people speculate he just passed out at the end and survived somehow
If only he had had fire, or a sourse of extreme heat.
I guess there is no for sure answer atm weather amputation works or not, but i 100% believe that specifically speaking to Lee's condition, that if you chose to amputate, the virus was no longer lethal and it was in fact the amputation itself that killed him. this opinion is mostly due to the fact that Lee did not have his blackouts and looked much less "walker-like"... also to back up hihitwd, Pete does say it worked for a cousin...
Yeah I agree. Most likely Lee died from the blood lost, I say this because Hershel from the series was bitten in the leg and they cut it off and he survived but someone made a point about it taking longer for the infection to travel from the leg and the guy Lee saves in the game from cutting his leg dies from blood loss. I hope Lee survived from the amputation. I liked him alot and it was hard to choose any option for him
Well, in a zombie apocalypse, i prefer the small chance of amputation than the 100% of turning a zombie.