A revolution in medicine Flashcards
What did Sir James Simpson do (1811-1870)
He experimented with the use of chloroform as an anaesthetic - It relieved pain during operations and fewer people died of shock
Operations no longer needed to completed at extreme speeds
However - No knowledge of antiseptics so many patients died of sepsis
Opposition to the use of anaesthetics and difficult to get the dose right
Some surgeons tried more difficult/longer surgeries due to it and caused a higher mortality rate
Who created antiseptics and what happened due to that
Sir Joseph Lister - pioneered antiseptic surgery using carbolic acid sprayed over the patient to keep infection at bay
The biggest killer after surgery was sepsis
Carbolic spray was used to sterilise surgical instruments and dressings
HE REDUCED THE MORTALITY RATE FROM 46% TO 15% IN 3 YEARS
However surgeons still not wearing surgical clothing
Opposition to Lister and Simpson amongst some surgeons as mistakes could be made when using carbolic spray
Who discovered germ theory 1961 and what was it
Louis Pasteur discovered it
The idea that disease is spread by organisms called germs. He grew vaccines in the laboratory
Famous for inventing rabies vaccine
Invented pasteurisation - to preserve liquids like milk and stop them going off
What did Robert Koch do (1843-1910)
He invented a way to stain bacteria so that they could be seen under the microscope
Developed an experimental approach that was able to identify the bacteria that causes anthrax, TB and cholera
What did Paul Ehrlich do?
He used Koch’s staining techniques to study blood cells
Developed an anti-diptheria serum
His work on chemotherapy let to the idea of MAGIC BULLETS that would target specific organisms in the body so the whole body wouldn’t be harmed
He developed salvarsan as a treatment for syphilis
Why was action needed against cholera 1831-32
Cholera was a new disease – something which had been known abroad but which had never been seen in England before. There was no known treatment.
Cholera could develop within a few hours of exposure to the disease and could lead to death within days.
Cholera could kill large numbers very quickly – in a small area of a few streets, a hundred people could die each day.
As a result of the cholera epidemic of 1831-2, churches in towns like York ran out of space for burials and had to take over land for extra burials.
How did John Snow help deal with the problem of cholera
He managed to identify where the source of the cholera outbreak was coming from and identified it as from a water pump, cases immediately diminished when the pump handle was removed
It showed that cholera wasn’t airborne
1848 public health act
Local authorities were given the power to appoint an officer of health, who had to be a legally qualified medical practitioner, and to improve sanitation in their area, eg collect rubbish, build sewers and provide a clean water supply.
1875 public health act
It forced councils to carry out improvements that were stated in the 1948 public health act eg the provision of clean water, proper drainage and sewage systems
The appointment of a Medical Officer of Health in every area.
How treatments available to ordinary people in England changed
Hospitals became cleaner and safer
Surgery became safer
Eventually germ theory led to development of drugs (antibiotics) to treat disease
Vaccinations for more diseases became available
Some diseases ie diphtheria became almost non-existent
How did war help anaesthetics, antiseptics and aseptic surgery accepted
Battlefield surgeons used all these with success in the Crimean war and later during the First World War, showing the techniques were valid and could reduce loss of patients through pain and infection
