History of Surgery Flashcards
4000 B.C. Cuneiform Script
First anatomical descriptions of human organs on tablets from Nineveh
2500 B.C. Imhotep
A revered Egyptian physician (declared to be divine); wrote an early “book” on surgery
2000 B.C. Code of Hammurabi
Medical practices of the day were described; some reflected real insight into disease; most were religious in nature
1500 B.C. Vedas (Hindu)
Correlated the “sweet smell” of urine with a specific disease
1000 B.C. Homer
Early Greek history/myth by this writer provided a view of military medicine of the time
500 B.C. Aristotle
Established an early “scientific” mindset; founder of comparative anatomy
A.D. 47 Celsus
Described the signs of inflammation
1500 Pare
The greatest surgeon of the sixteenth century; began to ligate arteries after amputation; stopped cauterizing wounds with hot irons and oil
A.D. 162 Galen
The first great anatomist; controlled thought, unchallenged, for 1500 years; biology made to serve theology
1500 Andreas Vesalius
Father of modern anatomy; challenged Galen openly and correctly; performed dissections on human cadavers himself; used illustrators to create permanent records; changed the whole approach to anatomical studies
1800 Edward Jenner
Inventor of the smallpox vaccine
1850s Joseph Lister
Developed the technique of antiseptic surgery
1850s Louis Pasteur
Father of microbiology, and immunology
1850s Theodor Billroth
Responsible for advances in surgical procedures; best known for gastrectomy procedures
1850s Martinus Biejerinick
Developed the concept of a virus
1850s William Stewart Halsted
Developed meticulous closure of wounds
1950’s Michael DeBakey
Developed the first ventricular assist pump
1950s Denton Cooley
Perfected the heart-lung machine; performed first U.S. heart transplant and first total artificial heart implant
1900 Harvey Cushing
Father of neurosurgery; reduced mortality rate for meningiomas from 96 percent to 5 percent
1850s Wilhelm Roentgen
Developed the X-ray machine
1990s
Computer age changes surgery; stereotactic approach to neurosurgery; virtual reality offers promise for education and clinical practice
1980s
Technological revolution begins; endoscopic surgery becomes routine
2000s
Minimally invasive surgical (MIS) techniques, including lasers and robotic-assisted surgery, continue to evolve with the advances in biotechnology
