1700-1900 (Anasthetics) Flashcards
What is the purpose of anaesthetic?
Ease pain during surgery
Before 1800 what was used as an anaesthetic?
Alcohol and opium
Was alcohol and opium (used before 1800) successful in easing pain?
No it had little success
What gas was used in 1844?
Laughing gas
When laughing gas was used in 1844, what was it used for?
Dentistry in the USA
Why would laughing gas not work (1844)?
Failed to ease all pain and patients remained conscious
What was used in 1846 to ease pain?
Ether
What were the cons of Ether?
Could make patients cough during operations, and sick afterwards
(+ it was highly flammable and transported in heavy glass bottles)
What was used in 1847?
Chloroform
Was chloroform effective?
Yes
What were the cons of Chloroform?
Difficult to get the right dose and could kill some people due to its affect in their heart (-an inhaler helped to regulate the dosage)
What was used as the first local anaesthetic in 1884?
Cocaine
In 1905 ,a less addictive version of cocaine would be used for anaesthetics? What is this called?
Novocaine
What’s novacaine?
A general anaesthetic
Who discovered chloroform
James Simpson
What were the Pros of using Ether?
Male patients completely unconscious and lasted a long time
Who gave lectures and wrote articles to promote the use of chloroform in surgery and childbirth?
James Simpson
Why were people opposed to/ worried about using anaesthetics?
Worried about long term effects- believed unconscious patients were more likely to die.
Since the victorians were very religious, they believed God inflicted pain for a reason, why did this cause an opposition to anaesthesia?
Because it would be wrong to interfere with gods plan
