-
Period: to
Early Medicine
Pre-19th century medicine revolved around humoralism, the concept that the body was made of 4 bodily fluids, and illness was resulted from their imbalance. Dating back to the ancient Greeks and Romans, it was discredited around the 1800s due to medical advancements. Early medicinal thought was also heavily influenced by religion. Illness were believed to be caused by supernatural forces or from angry gods. During this era, dangerous methods were practiced, such as bloodletting and purging. -
Pulmonary circulation discovered
In 1628, William Harvey published An Anatomical Study of the Motion of the Heart and of the Blood in Animals, which confirmed his discovery of pulmonary circulation and formed the foundation for future research on blood vessels, arteries and the heart. His publication also marked the beginning of modern experimental physiology. -
Intravenous blood transfusion experimentation
English architect Christopher Wren is the first to administer medications intravenously by means of an animal bladder attached to a sharpened quill. Wren also experiments with canine blood transfusions. -
Discovery of the cell
British scientist, Robert Hooke, discovered and named the cell using a microscope. He remarked that they bore a similar resemblance to "enclosed chambers" or small rooms in which monks lived. -
Bacteria discovered
Anton van Leeuwenhoek became the first to observe bacteria after. He is known as the 'Father of Microbiology' and was the first to observe single-cell organisms that he called 'animalcules.' -
First vaccine for smallpox
After widespread devastation from smallpox, Edward Jenner developed the process of modern vaccination after discovering that intentional exposure to harmless cowpox virus gave protection against smallpox. -
Period: to
Rise of Modern Medicine
During the 19th century, several medical advancements took place due to technological improvement, new discoveries, and scientific theory. Medicine moved away from religious superstition and towards scientific inquiry. -
First successful blood transfusion
James Blundell, a British obstetrician, performed the first recorded successful human-to-human blood transfusion in 1818 in order to combat hemorrhage, which was often fatal. -
Pasteurization is invented
Louis Pasteur invented the process of Pasteurization, a heat-treatment process that destroys pathogenic microorganisms in certain foods and beverages, in order to prevent contamination in the absence of refrigeration. -
Introduction of antiseptics into medicine
Joseph Lister, a British surgeon, began widespread antiseptic surgical methods following the publishing of his Antiseptic Principle of the Practice of Surgery. Lister protected the site of surgical operation from infection by the surgeon’s hands and instruments using carbonic acid. -
First vaccination for Anthrax
Louis Pasteur began experimenting the concept of vaccination with Anthrax in 1879 after an epidemic in Europe. In 1881, he successfully innoculated 70 farm animals against the disease and developed the first official vaccination for Anthrax. -
First vaccine for Rabies
Louis Pasteur successfully developed the first vaccine against Rabies after treating infected animals until they became antivirulent, thus creating a neutralized agent (inactivated vaccines). This vaccine successfully treated an infected 9 year old boy, Joseph Meister in 1885. -
X-Rays discovered
German physicist, Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen, discovered what he called the phenomenon X-radiation. He took the first X-ray photographs, of the interiors of metal objects and of the bones in his wife’s hand. -
Blood type classification introduced to medicine
Austrian-American Karl Landsteiner immunologist/pathologist discovered blood compatibility and immune rejection, developing the ABO system of blood typing. This system classifies the bloods of human beings into A, B, AB, and O groups.
