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6500 BCE
Ancient Surgery
Skulls found in France show signs of rudimentary surgery called Trepanation. It involves drilling a hole in the skull. It was practiced as early as the Neolithic period for reasons that remain a mystery. -
1500 BCE
Ancient Egyptians
The Ancient Egyptians have some knowledge of anatomy from mummification. Egyptian surgeons use clamps, saws, forceps, scalpels, and scissors to perform surgery. They used honey as an antiseptic. -
1500 BCE
First successful Cesarian section
The first written record of a successful cesarean section comes from Switzerland in 1500. Jacob Nufer, a sow gelder,performed the operation on his wife. Both mom and baby survived. -
1200 BCE
Sushruta
He is considered the "Founding father of surgery." His period is usually placed between 1200 BC-60 BC. He was an early innovator of plastic surgery who taught and practiced on the banks of the Ganges River. -
600 BCE
Ancient brain surgery
A skull buried in the ancient Roman city of Bathonea, was found to have been but into. Examinations of the skull show the patient survived the apparent surgery. -
300 BCE
Ancient Greeks
Ancient Greek surgeons bathe wounds with wine to prevent them from becoming infected. They continued performing surgeries. -
129 BCE
Galen
He was a Roman physician of Greek origin and was a physician to the Gladiators. He was the doctrine of the 4 bodily humors: blood, phlegm, yellow and black bile. -
140
Anesthesia
Hua Tuo was a famous Chinese physician. He is best known for his surgical operations and the use of mafeisan, an herbal anesthetic made from hemp. -
490
Metrodora
She was a Greek Physician. She wrote a book titled, "The Diseases and Cures of Women." -
809
Hunayn Ibn Ishaq
He was an Arab Nestorian Christian physician who translated many Greek medical and scientific texts including those of Galen. He wrote the 1st systematic treatment of ophthalmology. -
865
Rhazes
Rhazes was a Persian physician. He wrote a pioneering book about smallpox and measles providing clinical characterization of the diseases. His works were widely circulated in Arabic and Greek versions and were published in Latin in the 15th century. -
900
Al Zahrawi
He was a famous Islamic surgeon who wrote books focused on orthopedics. It also included information on military surgery, and ear, nose, and throat surgery. -
1030
The Canon of Medicine
The Cannon of Medicine is an encyclopedia of medicine in five books compiled by Persian philosopher Avicenna. It presents an overview of the contemporary medical knowledge, which had been largely influenced by Galen. The Canon of Medicine remained a medical authority for centuries. -
Jan 12, 1315
Human dissection
He was an Italian physician, anatomist, and professor of surgery. Mondino de Luzzi conducted a public dissection for his students and spectators. -
1450
Dissections at Church
The church allowed some dissections of human bodies at medical schools but Galen ideas still dominate.Dissections allowed others to see into the human body, which could help them discover further into the human body. -
1540
Barber Surgeons
English barbers and surgeons unite to form the United Barber Surgeons company. They practiced medical procedures such as "bloodletting", pulling teeth, and enemas. -
1543
Andreas Vesalius
He published the 1st fully illustrated textbook of human anatomy. Surgeons were not at least familiar with the location and relationships of anatomical structures. -
Claudius Amyand
Claudius Amyand performs the first successful appendectomy.This success made doctors confident on doing appendix surgeries. -
James Blundell
James Blundell performed the first successful transfusion of human blood.This changed history since it helped transfusions become a safer practice. -
First Female Physician
Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell was the first female physician in the United States. 40 years after her graduation she was finally recognized as the first female MD in the U.S. -
First Plastic Surgeon
The first American plastic surgeon was John Peter Mettauer, who, in 1827, performed the first cleft palate operation. He operated with instruments that he designed himself. -
First Female Surgeon
Dr. Mary Edwards Walker is recorded as the first female surgeon in the United States. In 1855, she was the second female graduate of an American medical school. In 1863, she became the first female surgeon in the US Army after several years of practice as a nurse -
First Brain Surgeon
William Williams Keen, Jr. was an American doctor who was the first brain surgeon in the United States. He graduated in medicine from Jefferson Medical College in 1862. -
First British Operation using ether
The first British operation under anesthesia was undertaken by Robert Liston at University College Hospital. Liston used ether to amputate the leg of a butler, Frederick Churchill. The amputation took only 28 seconds. -
Discovery of Anesthetic Properties
William Norton and Sir James Young Simpson discovered anesthetic properties. The following year patients were pain free in surgery because they where under general anesthesia. -
Rubber gloves used for the first time
Rubber gloves are first used during surgery. Rubber gloves helped improve infection and are safer for the surgeons -
First successful Open Heart Surgery
Dr. Daniel Hale Williams performed the first successful heart surgery. It was performed at Provident Hospital in Chicago. -
First Brain Tumor operation
First brain tumor operation under local anesthesia is performed by Dr. K. Winfield Ney. It was performed at the Beth Israel Hospital in New York City. -
First Lobotomy
António Egas Moniz performed his first psychosurgery on the frontal lobe. It was described by the Nobel Committee as one of the most important discoveries ever made in psychiatric medicine. -
First Corretive Heart Surgery
The surgery was performed by Dr. Charles Bailey. It was created to correct mitral stenosis, a valve that does not open completely, sadly, most patients died. -
First KidneyTransplant
The first successful kidney transplant was performed by Dr. Joseph Murray at the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital in Boston. The patients were identical twin brothers. -
First Cardiac Pacemaker
Dr. Albert Hyman was the inventor of the very first artificial pacemaker. It was first used in a patient in 1960. -
First Liver transplant
The first successful Liver Transplant was done by Dr. Starzl, it was the first successful liver transplant. Liver transplants are now done in hundreds of hospitals. -
First Heart Transplant
The first successful heart transplant surgery was performed by Dr. Christian Barnard. Lewis Washkansky was the recipient. sadly, he died 18 days later from double pneumonia. -
First Robot-assisted Surgery
The first robot to assist in surgery was the Arthrobot, which was developed and used for the first time in Vancouver in 1983. Intimately involved were biomedical engineer, Dr. James McEwen, Geof Auchinleck, a UBC engineering physics grad, and Dr. Brian Day as well as a team of engineering students. The robot was used in an orthopaedic surgical procedure on March 12, 1984, at the UBC Hospital in Vancouver. -
First Laproscopic Surgery
Prof Dr Med Erich Mühe of Böblingen, Germany, performed the first laparoscopic cholecystectomy on September 12, 1985. The German Surgical Society rejected Mühe in 1986 after he reported that he had performed the first laparoscopic cholecystectomy, yet in 1992 he received their highest award, the German Surgical Society Anniversary Award. -
Da Vinci Surgical System
The Da Vinci Surgical System is a robotic surgical system made by the American company Intuitive Surgical. It was Approved by the FDA in 2000. The system is commonly used for prostatectomies, and increasingly for cardiac valve repair and gynecologic surgical procedures.
