Surgery Flashcards
What were the main problems with surgery?
Blood loss
Infection
Pain
Why was blood loss a problem? 1848-60
Saw very little progress in stopping blood loss
Tourniquet as the main method but was not have successful
Why was Infection a problem 1848-60?
Very little progress in this area as understanding of causes of disease was very limited
Unhygenic operations - Surgeos wore unwashes aprons form previous operations, unlikely to wash their hands
Operating theaters often had spectators, increasing chances of infection
The longer the operation the more likely one was to be infected
Why was pain a problem 1848-60?
Was progress in Pain relief
Surgery had to be fast while people were held down
Previous pain relief - alcohol, opium or getting knocked out
Discovery of the two anaesthetics ether andf chloroform
Who dicorvered chloroform and when?
James Simpson, 1847
Who discovered Ether and when?
Robert Liston, 1846
Benefits and negatives of Ether?
Pos.- Effective pain relief
Neg.- causes vomitting, irritation of the lung, coughing, highly flammable
Negatives and possitives of chloroform?
Pos.- an effecetive pain relief without the side effects of Ether
Neg.- difficult to get the dose correct, gave surgeons more times to attept longer operations, lead to more infection, opposition of its use inchild birth
Who and when was the choroform inhaler invented?
John Snow, 1846
