Timeline of medicine and medical technology
Encyclopedia
Antiquity
- 2600 BC – ImhotepImhotepImhotep , fl. 27th century BC was an Egyptian polymath, who served under the Third Dynasty king Djoser as chancellor to the pharaoh and high priest of the sun god Ra at Heliopolis...
wrote texts on ancient Egyptian medicineAncient Egyptian medicineThe medicine of the ancient Egyptians is some of the oldest documented. From the beginnings of the civilization in the until the Persian invasion of 525 BC, Egyptian medical practice went largely unchanged and was highly advanced for its time, including simple non-invasive surgery, setting of...
describing diagnosis and treatment of 200 diseases in 3rd dynasty Egypt. - 1500 BC – SaffronSaffronSaffron is a spice derived from the flower of Crocus sativus, commonly known as the saffron crocus. Crocus is a genus in the family Iridaceae. Each saffron crocus grows to and bears up to four flowers, each with three vivid crimson stigmas, which are each the distal end of a carpel...
used as a medicine on the Aegean island of Thera in ancient Greece - 500 BC – Bian Que becomes the earliest physician known to use acupunctureAcupunctureAcupuncture is a type of alternative medicine that treats patients by insertion and manipulation of solid, generally thin needles in the body....
and pulse diagnosis - 420 BC – Hippocrates of Cos maintains that diseases have natural causes and puts forth the Hippocratic OathHippocratic OathThe Hippocratic Oath is an oath historically taken by physicians and other healthcare professionals swearing to practice medicine ethically. It is widely believed to have been written by Hippocrates, often regarded as the father of western medicine, or by one of his students. The oath is written in...
, marking the birth of medicine in the west - 400 – the Sushruta SamhitaSushruta SamhitaThe Sushruta Samhita is a Sanskrit text, attributed to one Sushruta, foundational to Ayurvedic medicine , with innovative chapters on surgery....
is published, laying the framework for Ayurvedic medicineAyurvedaAyurveda or ayurvedic medicine is a system of traditional medicine native to India and a form of alternative medicine. In Sanskrit, words , meaning "longevity", and , meaning "knowledge" or "science". The earliest literature on Indian medical practice appeared during the Vedic period in India,... - c. 400 BC - 1 BC – The Huangdi Neijing (Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine) is published, laying the framework for traditional Chinese medicineTraditional Chinese medicineTraditional Chinese Medicine refers to a broad range of medicine practices sharing common theoretical concepts which have been developed in China and are based on a tradition of more than 2,000 years, including various forms of herbal medicine, acupuncture, massage , exercise , and dietary therapy...
- 280 BC – Herophilus studies the nervous systemNervous systemThe nervous system is an organ system containing a network of specialized cells called neurons that coordinate the actions of an animal and transmit signals between different parts of its body. In most animals the nervous system consists of two parts, central and peripheral. The central nervous...
and distinguishes between sensory nerves and motor nerves - 270 – Huangfu Mi writes the Zhenjiu Jiayijing (The ABC Compendium of Acupuncture), the first textbook focusing solely on acupuncture
- 250 BC – ErasistratusErasistratusErasistratus was a Greek anatomist and royal physician under Seleucus I Nicator of Syria. Along with fellow physician Herophilus, he founded a school of anatomy in Alexandria, where they carried out anatomical research...
studies the brainHuman brainThe human brain has the same general structure as the brains of other mammals, but is over three times larger than the brain of a typical mammal with an equivalent body size. Estimates for the number of neurons in the human brain range from 80 to 120 billion...
and distinguishes between the cerebrumTelencephalonThe cerebrum or telencephalon, together with the diencephalon, constitutes the forebrain. The cerebrum is the most anterior region of the vertebrate central nervous system. Telencephalon refers to the embryonic structure, from which the mature cerebrum develops...
and cerebellumCerebellumThe cerebellum is a region of the brain that plays an important role in motor control. It may also be involved in some cognitive functions such as attention and language, and in regulating fear and pleasure responses, but its movement-related functions are the most solidly established... - 220 – Zhang ZhongjingZhang ZhongjingZhang Zhongjing , formal name Zhang Ji, was a Han Dynasty physician and one of the most eminent Chinese physicians during the later years of the Han Dynasty...
publishes Shang Han LunShang Han LunThe Shang Han Lun or Shang Han Za Bing Lun , known in English as the Treatise on Cold Damage Disorders or the Treatise on Cold Injury, is a Chinese medical treatise that was compiled by Zhang Zhongjing sometime before the year 220, at the end of the Han dynasty...
(On Cold Disease Damage), the oldest medical textbook in the world - 200 BC – the Charaka SamhitaCharaka SamhitaThe ' is an early Ayurvedic text on internal medicine. It is believed to be the oldest of the three ancient treatises of Ayurveda...
uses a rational approach to the causes and cure of disease and uses objective methods of clinicClinicA clinic is a health care facility that is primarily devoted to the care of outpatients...
al examination - 180 – GalenGalenAelius Galenus or Claudius Galenus , better known as Galen of Pergamon , was a prominent Roman physician, surgeon and philosopher...
studies the connection between paralysisParalysisParalysis is loss of muscle function for one or more muscles. Paralysis can be accompanied by a loss of feeling in the affected area if there is sensory damage as well as motor. A study conducted by the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, suggests that about 1 in 50 people have been diagnosed...
and severance of the spinal cordSpinal cordThe spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular bundle of nervous tissue and support cells that extends from the brain . The brain and spinal cord together make up the central nervous system... - 50–70 – Pedanius DioscoridesPedanius DioscoridesPedanius Dioscorides was a Greek physician, pharmacologist and botanist, the author of a 5-volume encyclopedia about herbal medicine and related medicinal substances , that was widely read for more than 1,500 years.-Life:...
writes De Materia Medica – a precursor of modern pharmacopoeias that was in use for almost 1600 years
Middle Ages
- c. 800–873 – Al-KindiAl-Kindi' , known as "the Philosopher of the Arabs", was a Muslim Arab philosopher, mathematician, physician, and musician. Al-Kindi was the first of the Muslim peripatetic philosophers, and is unanimously hailed as the "father of Islamic or Arabic philosophy" for his synthesis, adaptation and promotion...
(Alkindus) introducesss quantificationQuantificationQuantification has several distinct senses. In mathematics and empirical science, it is the act of counting and measuring that maps human sense observations and experiences into members of some set of numbers. Quantification in this sense is fundamental to the scientific method.In logic,...
into aasdxa with his De GradibusDe GradibusDe Gradibus was an Arabic book published by the Arab physician Al-Kindi . De gradibus is the Latinized name of the book. An alternative name for the book was Quia Primos.... - c. 830–870 – Hunayn ibn IshaqHunayn ibn IshaqHunayn ibn Ishaq was a famous and influential Assyrian Nestorian Christian scholar, physician, and scientist, known for his work in translating Greek scientific and medical works into Arabic and Syriac during the heyday of the Islamic Abbasid Caliphate.Ḥunayn ibn Isḥaq was the most productive...
transslates Galen's works into Arabic - c. 838–870 – Ali ibn Sahl Rabban al-TabariAli ibn Sahl Rabban al-TabariAbu al-Hasan Ali ibn Sahl Rabban al-Tabari also given as 810-855 and 783-858 was a Persian Muslim hakim, Islamic scholar, physician and psychologist of Zoroastrian descent, who produced one of the first encyclopedia of medicine. He was a pioneer of pediatrics and the field of child development...
, a pioneer in the field of child developmentChild developmentChild development stages describe theoretical milestones of child development. Many stage models of development have been proposed, used as working concepts and in some cases asserted as nativist theories....
, writes the first encyclopediaEncyclopediaAn encyclopedia is a type of reference work, a compendium holding a summary of information from either all branches of knowledge or a particular branch of knowledge....
of medicine in Arabic. - c. 865–925 – Rhazes pioneers pediatricsPediatricsPediatrics or paediatrics is the branch of medicine that deals with the medical care of infants, children, and adolescents. A medical practitioner who specializes in this area is known as a pediatrician or paediatrician...
, and makes the first clear distinction between smallpoxSmallpoxSmallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...
and measlesMeaslesMeasles, also known as rubeola or morbilli, is an infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus, specifically a paramyxovirus of the genus Morbillivirus. Morbilliviruses, like other paramyxoviruses, are enveloped, single-stranded, negative-sense RNA viruses...
in his al-Hawi. - 1000 – Abulcasis establishes surgerySurgerySurgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
as a profession of in his Kitab al-TasrifAl-TasrifThe Kitab al-Tasrif was an Arabic encyclopedia on medicine and surgery, written near the year 1000 by Abu al-Qasim al-Zahrawi...
, which remains a standard textbook in Muslim and European universitiesUniversityA university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
until the 16th century. The book described the plaster cast, inhalantInhalantInhalants are a broad range of drugs whose volatile vapors are taken in via the nose and trachea. They are taken by volatilization, and do not include drugs that are inhaled after burning or heating...
anesthesiaAnesthesiaAnesthesia, or anaesthesia , traditionally meant the condition of having sensation blocked or temporarily taken away...
, and many surgical instrumentsSurgical instrumentsA surgical instrument is a specially designed tool or device for performing specific actions of carrying out desired effects during a surgery or operation, such as modifying biological tissue, or to provide access for viewing it. Over time, many different kinds of surgical instruments and tools...
. - 1021 – Alhazen completes his Book of OpticsBook of OpticsThe Book of Optics ; ; Latin: De Aspectibus or Opticae Thesaurus: Alhazeni Arabis; Italian: Deli Aspecti) is a seven-volume treatise on optics and other fields of study composed by the medieval Muslim scholar Alhazen .-See also:* Science in medieval Islam...
, which made important advances in ophthalmologyOphthalmology in medieval IslamOphthalmology was one of the foremost branches in medieval Islamic medicine. The oculist or kahhal , a somewhat despised professional in Galen’s time, was an honored member of the medical profession by the Abbasid period, occupying a unique place in royal households...
and eye surgeryEye surgeryEye surgery, also known as orogolomistician surgery or ocular surgery, is surgery performed on the eye or its adnexa, typically by an ophthalmologist.-Preparation and precautions:...
, as it correctly explained the process of visual perceptionVisual perceptionVisual perception is the ability to interpret information and surroundings from the effects of visible light reaching the eye. The resulting perception is also known as eyesight, sight, or vision...
. - c. 1030 – AvicennaAvicennaAbū ʿAlī al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Sīnā , commonly known as Ibn Sīnā or by his Latinized name Avicenna, was a Persian polymath, who wrote almost 450 treatises on a wide range of subjects, of which around 240 have survived...
writes The Book of HealingThe Book of HealingThe Book of Healing is a scientific and philosophical encyclopedia written by Abū Alī ibn Sīnā from Asfahana, near Bukhara in Greater Persia. Despite its English title, it is not in fact concerned with medicine...
and The Canon of MedicineThe Canon of MedicineThe Canon of Medicine is an encyclopedia of Galenic medicine in five books compiled by Ibn Sīnā and completed in 1025. It presents a clear and organized summary of all the medical knowledge of the time...
, in which he establishes experimental medicine and evidence-based medicineEvidence-based medicineEvidence-based medicine or evidence-based practice aims to apply the best available evidence gained from the scientific method to clinical decision making. It seeks to assess the strength of evidence of the risks and benefits of treatments and diagnostic tests...
. The Canon remains a standard textbook in Muslim and European universitiesUniversityA university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
until the 18th century. The book's contributions to medicine includes the introduction of clinical trialClinical trialClinical trials are a set of procedures in medical research and drug development that are conducted to allow safety and efficacy data to be collected for health interventions...
s, the discovery of contagious diseasesInfectious diseaseInfectious diseases, also known as communicable diseases, contagious diseases or transmissible diseases comprise clinically evident illness resulting from the infection, presence and growth of pathogenic biological agents in an individual host organism...
, the distinction of mediastinitisMediastinitisMediastinitis is inflammation of the tissues in the mid-chest, or mediastinum. It can be either acute or chronic.Acute mediastinitis is usually bacterial and due to rupture of organs in the mediastinum. As the infection can progress rapidly, this is considered a serious condition...
from pleurisyPleurisyPleurisy is an inflammation of the pleura, the lining of the pleural cavity surrounding the lungs. Among other things, infections are the most common cause of pleurisy....
, the contagious nature of phthisis, the distribution of diseaseDiseaseA disease is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism. It is often construed to be a medical condition associated with specific symptoms and signs. It may be caused by external factors, such as infectious disease, or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions, such as autoimmune...
s by waterWaterWater is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
and soilSoilSoil is a natural body consisting of layers of mineral constituents of variable thicknesses, which differ from the parent materials in their morphological, physical, chemical, and mineralogical characteristics...
, and the first careful descriptions of skinHuman skinThe human skin is the outer covering of the body. In humans, it is the largest organ of the integumentary system. The skin has multiple layers of ectodermal tissue and guards the underlying muscles, bones, ligaments and internal organs. Human skin is similar to that of most other mammals,...
troubles, sexually transmitted diseaseSexually transmitted diseaseSexually transmitted disease , also known as a sexually transmitted infection or venereal disease , is an illness that has a significant probability of transmission between humans by means of human sexual behavior, including vaginal intercourse, oral sex, and anal sex...
s, perversionPerversionPerversion is a concept describing those types of human behavior that are a serious deviation from what is considered to be orthodox or normal. Although it can refer to varying forms of deviation, it is most often used to describe sexual behaviors that are seen by an individual as abnormal,...
s, and nervous ailmentsAnxietyAnxiety is a psychological and physiological state characterized by somatic, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral components. The root meaning of the word anxiety is 'to vex or trouble'; in either presence or absence of psychological stress, anxiety can create feelings of fear, worry, uneasiness,...
, as well the use of iceIceIce is water frozen into the solid state. Usually ice is the phase known as ice Ih, which is the most abundant of the varying solid phases on the Earth's surface. It can appear transparent or opaque bluish-white color, depending on the presence of impurities or air inclusions...
to treat feverFeverFever is a common medical sign characterized by an elevation of temperature above the normal range of due to an increase in the body temperature regulatory set-point. This increase in set-point triggers increased muscle tone and shivering.As a person's temperature increases, there is, in...
s, and the separation of medicineMedicineMedicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
from pharmacologyPharmacologyPharmacology is the branch of medicine and biology concerned with the study of drug action. More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur between a living organism and chemicals that affect normal or abnormal biochemical function...
. - 1100–1161 – AvenzoarIbn ZuhrAbū Merwān ’Abdal-Malik ibn Zuhr was a Muslim physician, surgeon and teacher in Al-Andalus.He was born at Seville...
carries out human dissectionDissectionDissection is usually the process of disassembling and observing something to determine its internal structure and as an aid to discerning the functions and relationships of its components....
s and postmortem autopsyAutopsyAn autopsy—also known as a post-mortem examination, necropsy , autopsia cadaverum, or obduction—is a highly specialized surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse to determine the cause and manner of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that may be present...
, and proves that the skin disease scabiesScabiesScabies , known colloquially as the seven-year itch, is a contagious skin infection that occurs among humans and other animals. It is caused by a tiny and usually not directly visible parasite, the mite Sarcoptes scabiei, which burrows under the host's skin, causing intense allergic itching...
is caused by a parasite, which contradicted the erroneous theory of humorismHumorismHumorism, or humoralism, is a now discredited theory of the makeup and workings of the human body, adopted by Greek and Roman physicians and philosophers, positing that an excess or deficiency of any of four distinct bodily fluids in a person directly influences their temperament and health...
. He was also the first to provide a real scientific etiologyEtiologyEtiology is the study of causation, or origination. The word is derived from the Greek , aitiologia, "giving a reason for" ....
for the inflammatory diseasesInflammationInflammation is part of the complex biological response of vascular tissues to harmful stimuli, such as pathogens, damaged cells, or irritants. Inflammation is a protective attempt by the organism to remove the injurious stimuli and to initiate the healing process...
of the earEarThe ear is the organ that detects sound. It not only receives sound, but also aids in balance and body position. The ear is part of the auditory system....
, and the first to clearly discuss the causes of stridorStridorStridor is a high pitched wheezing sound resulting from turbulent air flow in the upper airway. Stridor is a physical sign which is produced by narrow or obstructed airway path. It can be inspiratory, expiratory or biphasic . Inspiratory stridor is common...
. Modern anesthesiaAnesthesiaAnesthesia, or anaesthesia , traditionally meant the condition of having sensation blocked or temporarily taken away...
was also developed in al-AndalusAl-AndalusAl-Andalus was the Arabic name given to a nation and territorial region also commonly referred to as Moorish Iberia. The name describes parts of the Iberian Peninsula and Septimania governed by Muslims , at various times in the period between 711 and 1492, although the territorial boundaries...
by the Muslim anesthesiologistAnesthesiologistAn anesthesiologist or anaesthetist is a physician trained in anesthesia and peri-operative medicine....
s Ibn Zuhr and Abulcasis. They utilized oral as well as inhalant anestheticsInhalational anaestheticAn inhalational anaesthetic is a chemical compound possessing general anaesthetic properties that can be delivered via inhalation. They are administered by anaesthetists through an anaesthesia mask, laryngeal mask airway or tracheal tube connected to some type of anaesthetic vaporiser and an...
, and they performed hundreds of surgeries under inhalantInhalantInhalants are a broad range of drugs whose volatile vapors are taken in via the nose and trachea. They are taken by volatilization, and do not include drugs that are inhaled after burning or heating...
anesthesia with the use of narcoticNarcoticThe term narcotic originally referred medically to any psychoactive compound with any sleep-inducing properties. In the United States of America it has since become associated with opioids, commonly morphine and heroin and their derivatives, such as hydrocodone. The term is, today, imprecisely...
-soaked sponges which were placed over the face. - 1242 – Ibn an-Nafis suggests that the right and left ventricleVentricle (heart)In the heart, a ventricle is one of two large chambers that collect and expel blood received from an atrium towards the peripheral beds within the body and lungs. The Atria primes the Pump...
s of the heartHuman heartThe human heart is a muscular organ that provides a continuous blood circulation through the cardiac cycle and is one of the most vital organs in the human body...
are separate and discovers the pulmonary circulationPulmonary circulationPulmonary circulation is the half portion of the cardiovascular system which carries Oxygen-depleted Blood away from the heart, to the Lungs, and returns oxygenated blood back to the heart. Encyclopedic description and discovery of the pulmonary circulation is widely attributed to Doctor Ibn...
(the cycle involving the ventricleVentricle (heart)In the heart, a ventricle is one of two large chambers that collect and expel blood received from an atrium towards the peripheral beds within the body and lungs. The Atria primes the Pump...
s of the heartHuman heartThe human heart is a muscular organ that provides a continuous blood circulation through the cardiac cycle and is one of the most vital organs in the human body...
and the lungsHuman lungThe human lungs are the organs of respiration in humans. Humans have two lungs, with the left being divided into two lobes and the right into three lobes. Together, the lungs contain approximately of airways and 300 to 500 million alveoli, having a total surface area of about in...
) and coronary circulationCoronary circulationCoronary circulation is the circulation of blood in the blood vessels of the heart muscle . The vessels that deliver oxygen-rich blood to the myocardium are known as coronary arteries...
, for which he is considered the pioneer of circulation theoryCirculatory systemThe circulatory system is an organ system that passes nutrients , gases, hormones, blood cells, etc...
and one of the greatest physiologists of the Middle Ages. He emphasized the rigours of verification by measurementMeasurementMeasurement is the process or the result of determining the ratio of a physical quantity, such as a length, time, temperature etc., to a unit of measurement, such as the metre, second or degree Celsius...
, observationObservationObservation is either an activity of a living being, such as a human, consisting of receiving knowledge of the outside world through the senses, or the recording of data using scientific instruments. The term may also refer to any data collected during this activity...
and experimentExperimentAn experiment is a methodical procedure carried out with the goal of verifying, falsifying, or establishing the validity of a hypothesis. Experiments vary greatly in their goal and scale, but always rely on repeatable procedure and logical analysis of the results...
, and was an early proponent of experimental medicine, postmortem autopsyAutopsyAn autopsy—also known as a post-mortem examination, necropsy , autopsia cadaverum, or obduction—is a highly specialized surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse to determine the cause and manner of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that may be present...
, and human dissectionDissectionDissection is usually the process of disassembling and observing something to determine its internal structure and as an aid to discerning the functions and relationships of its components....
. He also discredited many other erroneous AvicennianAvicennaAbū ʿAlī al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Sīnā , commonly known as Ibn Sīnā or by his Latinized name Avicenna, was a Persian polymath, who wrote almost 450 treatises on a wide range of subjects, of which around 240 have survived...
and GalenGalenAelius Galenus or Claudius Galenus , better known as Galen of Pergamon , was a prominent Roman physician, surgeon and philosopher...
ic doctrines on the four humoursHumorismHumorism, or humoralism, is a now discredited theory of the makeup and workings of the human body, adopted by Greek and Roman physicians and philosophers, positing that an excess or deficiency of any of four distinct bodily fluids in a person directly influences their temperament and health...
, pulsePulseIn medicine, one's pulse represents the tactile arterial palpation of the heartbeat by trained fingertips. The pulse may be palpated in any place that allows an artery to be compressed against a bone, such as at the neck , at the wrist , behind the knee , on the inside of the elbow , and near the...
boneBoneBones are rigid organs that constitute part of the endoskeleton of vertebrates. They support, and protect the various organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells and store minerals. Bone tissue is a type of dense connective tissue...
s, muscleMuscleMuscle is a contractile tissue of animals and is derived from the mesodermal layer of embryonic germ cells. Muscle cells contain contractile filaments that move past each other and change the size of the cell. They are classified as skeletal, cardiac, or smooth muscles. Their function is to...
s, intestineIntestineIn human anatomy, the intestine is the segment of the alimentary canal extending from the pyloric sphincter of the stomach to the anus and, in humans and other mammals, consists of two segments, the small intestine and the large intestine...
s, sensory organsSensory systemA sensory system is a part of the nervous system responsible for processing sensory information. A sensory system consists of sensory receptors, neural pathways, and parts of the brain involved in sensory perception. Commonly recognized sensory systems are those for vision, hearing, somatic...
, biliousBileBile or gall is a bitter-tasting, dark green to yellowish brown fluid, produced by the liver of most vertebrates, that aids the process of digestion of lipids in the small intestine. In many species, bile is stored in the gallbladder and upon eating is discharged into the duodenum...
canalsCanal (anatomy)In anatomy, a canal is a tubular passage or channel which connect different regions of the body.Examples include:* Head/Skull** Infraorbital canal** Alveolar canals** Palatovaginal canal** Greater palatine canal...
, esophagusEsophagusThe esophagus is an organ in vertebrates which consists of a muscular tube through which food passes from the pharynx to the stomach. During swallowing, food passes from the mouth through the pharynx into the esophagus and travels via peristalsis to the stomach...
, stomachStomachThe stomach is a muscular, hollow, dilated part of the alimentary canal which functions as an important organ of the digestive tract in some animals, including vertebrates, echinoderms, insects , and molluscs. It is involved in the second phase of digestion, following mastication .The stomach is...
, and the anatomyAnatomyAnatomy is a branch of biology and medicine that is the consideration of the structure of living things. It is a general term that includes human anatomy, animal anatomy , and plant anatomy...
of other parts of the human bodyHuman bodyThe human body is the entire structure of a human organism, and consists of a head, neck, torso, two arms and two legs.By the time the human reaches adulthood, the body consists of close to 100 trillion cells, the basic unit of life...
. Ibn al-Nafis also drew diagramDiagramA diagram is a two-dimensional geometric symbolic representation of information according to some visualization technique. Sometimes, the technique uses a three-dimensional visualization which is then projected onto the two-dimensional surface...
s to illustrate different body parts in his new physiological system. - c. 1248 – Ibn al-Baitar wrote on botanyBotanyBotany, plant science, or plant biology is a branch of biology that involves the scientific study of plant life. Traditionally, botany also included the study of fungi, algae and viruses...
and pharmacyPharmacyPharmacy is the health profession that links the health sciences with the chemical sciences and it is charged with ensuring the safe and effective use of pharmaceutical drugs...
, studied animal anatomy and medicine, and was a pioneer of veterinary medicineVeterinary medicineVeterinary Medicine is the branch of science that deals with the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease, disorder and injury in non-human animals...
. - 1249 – Roger BaconRoger BaconRoger Bacon, O.F.M. , also known as Doctor Mirabilis , was an English philosopher and Franciscan friar who placed considerable emphasis on the study of nature through empirical methods...
writes about convex lens spectacles for treating long-sightedness - 1403 – concave lensLens (optics)A lens is an optical device with perfect or approximate axial symmetry which transmits and refracts light, converging or diverging the beam. A simple lens consists of a single optical element...
spectacles to treat myopiaMyopiaMyopia , "shortsightedness" ) is a refractive defect of the eye in which collimated light produces image focus in front of the retina under conditions of accommodation. In simpler terms, myopia is a condition of the eye where the light that comes in does not directly focus on the retina but in... - early 16th century: ParacelsusParacelsusParacelsus was a German-Swiss Renaissance physician, botanist, alchemist, astrologer, and general occultist....
, an alchemistAlchemyAlchemy is an influential philosophical tradition whose early practitioners’ claims to profound powers were known from antiquity. The defining objectives of alchemy are varied; these include the creation of the fabled philosopher's stone possessing powers including the capability of turning base...
by trade, rejects occultism and pioneers the use of chemicals and minerals in medicine
1500–1800
- 1543 – Andreas Vesalius publishes De Fabrica Corporis Humani which corrects Greek medical errors and revolutionizes European medicine
- 1546 – Girolamo FracastoroGirolamo FracastoroGirolamo Fracastoro was an Italian physician, poet, and scholar in mathematics, geography and astronomy. Fracastoro subscribed to the philosophy of atomism, and rejected appeals to hidden causes in scientific investigation....
proposes that epidemic diseases are caused by transferable seedlike entities - 1553 – Miguel Serveto describes the circulation of blood through the lungHuman lungThe human lungs are the organs of respiration in humans. Humans have two lungs, with the left being divided into two lobes and the right into three lobes. Together, the lungs contain approximately of airways and 300 to 500 million alveoli, having a total surface area of about in...
s. He is accused of heresy and burned at the stake - 1556 – Amato LusitanoAmato LusitanoJoão Rodrigues de Castelo Branco, better known as Amato Lusitano and Amatus Lusitanus , was a notable Portuguese Jewish physician of the 16th century. Like Herophilus, Galen, Ibn al-Nafis, Michael Servetus, Realdo Colombo and William Harvey, he is credited as making a discovery in the circulation...
describes venous valves in the Ázigos vein - 1559 – Realdo ColomboRealdo ColomboRealdo Colombo was an Italian professor of anatomy and a surgeon at the University of Padua between 1544 and 1559.- Early life and education :Matteo Realdo Colombo or Renaldus Columbus, was born in Cremona, Lombardy to an apothecary named Antonio Colombo...
describes the circulation of blood through the lungs in detail - 1563 – Garcia de OrtaGarcia de OrtaGarcia de Orta was a Portuguese Renaissance Sephardi Jewish physician and naturalist. He was a pioneer of tropical medicine.- Life :...
founds tropical medicineTropical medicineTropical medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with health problems that occur uniquely, are more widespread, or prove more difficult to control in tropical and subtropical regions....
with his treatise on Indian diseases and treatments - 1596 – Li ShizhenLi ShizhenLi Shizhen , courtesy name Dongbi , was one of the greatest Chinese herbologists and acupuncturists in Chinese history. His major contribution to medicine was his 27-year work, which is found in his epic book the Bencao Gangmu...
publishes Běncǎo Gāngmù or Compendium of Materia MedicaCompendium of Materia MedicaBencao Gangmu , also known as Compendium of Materia Medica, is a Chinese materia medica work written by Li Shizhen in the Ming Dynasty. It is a work epitomizing materia medica in the Ming Dynasty. The Bencao Gangmu is regarded as the most complete and comprehensive medical book ever written in the... - 1603 – Girolamo Fabrici studies leg veinVeinIn the circulatory system, veins are blood vessels that carry blood towards the heart. Most veins carry deoxygenated blood from the tissues back to the heart; exceptions are the pulmonary and umbilical veins, both of which carry oxygenated blood to the heart...
s and notices that they have valves which allow blood to flow only toward the heart - 1628 – William HarveyWilliam HarveyWilliam Harvey was an English physician who was the first person to describe completely and in detail the systemic circulation and properties of blood being pumped to the body by the heart...
explains the circulatory systemCirculatory systemThe circulatory system is an organ system that passes nutrients , gases, hormones, blood cells, etc...
in Exercitatio Anatomica de Motu Cordis et Sanguinis in AnimalibusExercitatio Anatomica de Motu Cordis et Sanguinis in AnimalibusExercitatio Anatomica de Motu Cordis et Sanguinis in Animalibus, is the best-known work of the physician William Harvey. The book was first published in 1628 and established the circulation of the blood. It is a landmark in the history of physiology. Just as important as its substance was its... - 1701 – Giacomo PylariniGiacomo PylariniGiacomo Pylarini was a Venetian physician and consul for the republic of Venice in Smyrna who in 1701 on the children of the English ambassador to Constantinople, gave the first smallpox inoculation outside of Turkey...
gives the first smallpoxSmallpoxSmallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...
innoculations in Europe. They were widely practised in the east before then. - 1736 – Claudius AymandClaudius AymandClaudius Aymand was a French surgeon who in 1736 performed the first recorded successful appendectomy. The patient was an 11-year boy who had an inguinal hernia combined with an acutely inflamed appendix. -References:...
performs the first successful appendectomy - 1747 – James LindJames LindJames Lind FRSE FRCPE was a Scottish physician. He was a pioneer of naval hygiene in the Royal Navy. By conducting the first ever clinical trial, he developed the theory that citrus fruits cured scurvy...
discovers that citrusCitrusCitrus is a common term and genus of flowering plants in the rue family, Rutaceae. Citrus is believed to have originated in the part of Southeast Asia bordered by Northeastern India, Myanmar and the Yunnan province of China...
fruitFruitIn broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
s prevent scurvyScurvyScurvy is a disease resulting from a deficiency of vitamin C, which is required for the synthesis of collagen in humans. The chemical name for vitamin C, ascorbic acid, is derived from the Latin name of scurvy, scorbutus, which also provides the adjective scorbutic... - 1774 – Joseph PriestleyJoseph PriestleyJoseph Priestley, FRS was an 18th-century English theologian, Dissenting clergyman, natural philosopher, chemist, educator, and political theorist who published over 150 works...
discovers nitrous oxideNitrous oxideNitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas or sweet air, is a chemical compound with the formula . It is an oxide of nitrogen. At room temperature, it is a colorless non-flammable gas, with a slightly sweet odor and taste. It is used in surgery and dentistry for its anesthetic and analgesic...
, nitric oxideNitric oxideNitric oxide, also known as nitrogen monoxide, is a diatomic molecule with chemical formula NO. It is a free radical and is an important intermediate in the chemical industry...
, ammoniaAmmoniaAmmonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . It is a colourless gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food and fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or...
, hydrogen chlorideHydrogen chlorideThe compound hydrogen chloride has the formula HCl. At room temperature, it is a colorless gas, which forms white fumes of hydrochloric acid upon contact with atmospheric humidity. Hydrogen chloride gas and hydrochloric acid are important in technology and industry...
and oxygenOxygenOxygen is the element with atomic number 8 and represented by the symbol O. Its name derives from the Greek roots ὀξύς and -γενής , because at the time of naming, it was mistakenly thought that all acids required oxygen in their composition... - 1785 – William WitheringWilliam WitheringWilliam Withering was an English botanist, geologist, chemist, physician and the discoverer of digitalis.-Introduction:...
publishes "An Account of the Foxglove" the first systematic description of digitalisDigitalisDigitalis is a genus of about 20 species of herbaceous perennials, shrubs, and biennials that are commonly called foxgloves. This genus was traditionally placed in the figwort family Scrophulariaceae, but recent reviews of phylogenetic research have placed it in the much enlarged family...
in treating dropsy - 1790 – Samuel HahnemannSamuel HahnemannChristian Friedrich Samuel Hahnemann was a German physician, known for creating an alternative form of medicine called homeopathy.- Early life :Christian Friedrich Samuel Hahnemann was born in Meissen, Saxony near Dresden...
rages against the prevalent practice of bloodlettingBloodlettingBloodletting is the withdrawal of often little quantities of blood from a patient to cure or prevent illness and disease. Bloodletting was based on an ancient system of medicine in which blood and other bodily fluid were considered to be "humors" the proper balance of which maintained health...
as a universal cure and founds homeopathyHomeopathyHomeopathy is a form of alternative medicine in which practitioners claim to treat patients using highly diluted preparations that are believed to cause healthy people to exhibit symptoms that are similar to those exhibited by the patient... - 1796 – Edward JennerEdward JennerEdward Anthony Jenner was an English scientist who studied his natural surroundings in Berkeley, Gloucestershire...
develops a smallpox vaccinationVaccinationVaccination is the administration of antigenic material to stimulate the immune system of an individual to develop adaptive immunity to a disease. Vaccines can prevent or ameliorate the effects of infection by many pathogens...
method - 1799 – Humphry DavyHumphry DavySir Humphry Davy, 1st Baronet FRS MRIA was a British chemist and inventor. He is probably best remembered today for his discoveries of several alkali and alkaline earth metals, as well as contributions to the discoveries of the elemental nature of chlorine and iodine...
discovers the anesthetic properties of nitrous oxide
1800–1899
- 1800 – Humphry DavyHumphry DavySir Humphry Davy, 1st Baronet FRS MRIA was a British chemist and inventor. He is probably best remembered today for his discoveries of several alkali and alkaline earth metals, as well as contributions to the discoveries of the elemental nature of chlorine and iodine...
announces the anaesthetic properties of nitrous oxideNitrous oxideNitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas or sweet air, is a chemical compound with the formula . It is an oxide of nitrogen. At room temperature, it is a colorless non-flammable gas, with a slightly sweet odor and taste. It is used in surgery and dentistry for its anesthetic and analgesic... - 1816 – Rene LaennecRené LaennecRené-Théophile-Hyacinthe Laennec was a French physician. He invented the stethoscope in 1816, while working at the Hôpital Necker and pioneered its use in diagnosing various chest conditions....
invents the stethoscopeStethoscopeThe stethoscope is an acoustic medical device for auscultation, or listening to the internal sounds of an animal body. It is often used to listen to lung and heart sounds. It is also used to listen to intestines and blood flow in arteries and veins... - 1818 – James BlundellJames Blundell (physician)James Blundell English obstetrician who performed the first successful transfusion of blood to a patient for treatment of a haemorrhage.-Early years:...
performs the first successful human blood transfusionBlood transfusionBlood transfusion is the process of receiving blood products into one's circulation intravenously. Transfusions are used in a variety of medical conditions to replace lost components of the blood... - 1842 – Crawford LongCrawford LongCrawford Williamson Long was an American surgeon and pharmacist best known for his first use of inhaled diethyl ether as an anesthetic...
performs the first surgical operation using anaesthesia with etherEtherEthers are a class of organic compounds that contain an ether group — an oxygen atom connected to two alkyl or aryl groups — of general formula R–O–R'. A typical example is the solvent and anesthetic diethyl ether, commonly referred to simply as "ether"... - 1846 – First painless surgery with general anaesthetic
- 1847 – Ignaz SemmelweisIgnaz SemmelweisIgnaz Philipp Semmelweis was a Hungarian physician now known as an early pioneer of antiseptic procedures. Described as the "savior of mothers", Semmelweis discovered that the incidence of puerperal fever could be drastically cut by the use of hand disinfection in obstetrical clinics...
discovers how to prevent puerperal feverPuerperal feverPuerperal fever or childbed fever, is a bacterial infection contracted by women during childbirth or miscarriage. It can develop into puerperal sepsis, which is a serious form of septicaemia. If untreated, it is often fatal.... - 1849 – Elizabeth Blackwell is the first woman to gain a medical degree
- 1867 – ListerJoseph Lister, 1st Baron ListerJoseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister OM, FRS, PC , known as Sir Joseph Lister, Bt., between 1883 and 1897, was a British surgeon and a pioneer of antiseptic surgery, who promoted the idea of sterile surgery while working at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary...
publishes Antiseptic Principle of the Practice of SurgeryAntiseptic Principle of the Practice of Surgery"Antiseptic Principle of the Practice of Surgery" is a paper regarding antiseptics written by Joseph Lister in 1867.- External links :* * —Internet Archive...
, based partly on Pasteur's work - 1870 – Louis PasteurLouis PasteurLouis Pasteur was a French chemist and microbiologist born in Dole. He is remembered for his remarkable breakthroughs in the causes and preventions of diseases. His discoveries reduced mortality from puerperal fever, and he created the first vaccine for rabies and anthrax. His experiments...
and Robert KochRobert KochHeinrich Hermann Robert Koch was a German physician. He became famous for isolating Bacillus anthracis , the Tuberculosis bacillus and the Vibrio cholerae and for his development of Koch's postulates....
establish the germ theory of diseaseGerm theory of diseaseThe germ theory of disease, also called the pathogenic theory of medicine, is a theory that proposes that microorganisms are the cause of many diseases... - 1878 – Ellis Reynolds ShippEllis Reynolds ShippEllis Reynolds Shipp was one of the first female doctors in Utah. She founded The School of Nursing and Obstetrics in 1879, and was on the board of the Deseret Hospital Association...
graduates from Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania and begins practice in Utah - 1879 – First vaccine for choleraCholeraCholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
- 1881 – Louis Pasteur develops an anthrax vaccine
- 1882 – Louis Pasteur develops a rabiesRabiesRabies is a viral disease that causes acute encephalitis in warm-blooded animals. It is zoonotic , most commonly by a bite from an infected animal. For a human, rabies is almost invariably fatal if post-exposure prophylaxis is not administered prior to the onset of severe symptoms...
vaccine - 1890 – Emil von Behring discovers antitoxinAntitoxinAn antitoxin is an antibody with the ability to neutralize a specific toxin. Antitoxins are produced by certain animals, plants, and bacteria. Although they are most effective in neutralizing toxins, they can kill bacteria and other microorganisms. Antitoxins are made within organisms, but can be...
s and uses them to develop tetanusTetanusTetanus is a medical condition characterized by a prolonged contraction of skeletal muscle fibers. The primary symptoms are caused by tetanospasmin, a neurotoxin produced by the Gram-positive, rod-shaped, obligate anaerobic bacterium Clostridium tetani...
and diphtheriaDiphtheriaDiphtheria is an upper respiratory tract illness caused by Corynebacterium diphtheriae, a facultative anaerobic, Gram-positive bacterium. It is characterized by sore throat, low fever, and an adherent membrane on the tonsils, pharynx, and/or nasal cavity...
vaccines - 1895 – Wilhelm Conrad RöntgenWilhelm Conrad RöntgenWilhelm Conrad Röntgen was a German physicist, who, on 8 November 1895, produced and detected electromagnetic radiation in a wavelength range today known as X-rays or Röntgen rays, an achievement that earned him the first Nobel Prize in Physics in 1901....
discovers medical use of X-rayX-rayX-radiation is a form of electromagnetic radiation. X-rays have a wavelength in the range of 0.01 to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30 petahertz to 30 exahertz and energies in the range 120 eV to 120 keV. They are shorter in wavelength than UV rays and longer than gamma...
s in medical imagingMedical imagingMedical imaging is the technique and process used to create images of the human body for clinical purposes or medical science... - 1897 – Asprin is invented in Germany.
1900–1999
- 1901 – Karl LandsteinerKarl LandsteinerKarl Landsteiner , was an Austrian-born American biologist and physician of Jewish origin. He is noted for having first distinguished the main blood groups in 1900, having developed the modern system of classification of blood groups from his identification of the presence of agglutinins in the...
discovers the existence of different human blood typeBlood typeA blood type is a classification of blood based on the presence or absence of inherited antigenic substances on the surface of red blood cells . These antigens may be proteins, carbohydrates, glycoproteins, or glycolipids, depending on the blood group system...
s - 1901 – Alois AlzheimerAlois AlzheimerAloysius "Alois" Alzheimer, was a German psychiatrist and neuropathologist and a colleague of Emil Kraepelin. Alzheimer is credited with identifying the first published case of "presenile dementia", which Kraepelin would later identify as Alzheimer's disease....
identifies the first case of what becomes known as Alzheimer's diseaseAlzheimer's diseaseAlzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death... - 1903 - Willem EinthovenWillem EinthovenWillem Einthoven was a Dutch doctor and physiologist. He invented the first practical electrocardiogram in 1903 and received the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1924 for it....
discovers electrocardiography (ECG/EKG) - 1906 – Frederick HopkinsFrederick HopkinsSir Frederick Gowland Hopkins OM FRS was an English biochemist who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1929, with Christiaan Eijkman, for the discovery of vitamins. He also discovered the amino acid tryptophan, in 1901...
suggests the existence of vitaminVitaminA vitamin is an organic compound required as a nutrient in tiny amounts by an organism. In other words, an organic chemical compound is called a vitamin when it cannot be synthesized in sufficient quantities by an organism, and must be obtained from the diet. Thus, the term is conditional both on...
s and suggests that a lack of vitamins causes scurvyScurvyScurvy is a disease resulting from a deficiency of vitamin C, which is required for the synthesis of collagen in humans. The chemical name for vitamin C, ascorbic acid, is derived from the Latin name of scurvy, scorbutus, which also provides the adjective scorbutic...
and ricketsRicketsRickets is a softening of bones in children due to deficiency or impaired metabolism of vitamin D, magnesium , phosphorus or calcium, potentially leading to fractures and deformity. Rickets is among the most frequent childhood diseases in many developing countries... - 1907 – Paul EhrlichPaul EhrlichPaul Ehrlich was a German scientist in the fields of hematology, immunology, and chemotherapy, and Nobel laureate. He is noted for curing syphilis and for his research in autoimmunity, calling it "horror autotoxicus"...
develops a chemotherapeutic cure for sleeping sickness - 1908 – Victor HorsleyVictor HorsleySir Victor Alexander Haden Horsley was an accomplished scientist and professor. He was born in Kensington, London. He was educated at Cranbrook School, Kent and studied medicine at University College London and in Berlin, Germany , and in the same year started his career as a house surgeon and...
and R. Clarke invents the stereotactic method - 1909 – First Intrauterine deviceIntrauterine deviceA copper IUD is a type of intrauterine device. Most IUDs have a plastic T- or U-shaped frame which is wrapped in copper wire, with the exception of Gynefix, which is a plastic string with several copper beads, affixed to the fundus of the uterus...
described by Richard Richter. - 1910 - Hans Christian Jacobeus performs the first laparoscopyLaparoscopic surgeryLaparoscopic surgery, also called minimally invasive surgery , bandaid surgery, or keyhole surgery, is a modern surgical technique in which operations in the abdomen are performed through small incisions as opposed to the larger incisions needed in laparotomy.Keyhole surgery makes use of images...
on humans - 1917 – Julius Wagner-JaureggJulius Wagner-JaureggJulius Wagner-Jauregg was an Austrian physician, Nobel Laureate, and Nazi supporter.-Early life:...
discovers the malarial fever shock therapyElectroconvulsive therapyElectroconvulsive therapy , formerly known as electroshock, is a psychiatric treatment in which seizures are electrically induced in anesthetized patients for therapeutic effect. Its mode of action is unknown...
for general paresis of the insaneGeneral paresis of the insaneGeneral paresis, also known as general paralysis of the insane or paralytic dementia, is a neuropsychiatric disorder affecting the brain and central nervous system, caused by syphilis infection... - 1921 – Edward Mellanby discovers vitamin DVitamin DVitamin D is a group of fat-soluble secosteroids. In humans, vitamin D is unique both because it functions as a prohormone and because the body can synthesize it when sun exposure is adequate ....
and shows that its absence causes ricketsRicketsRickets is a softening of bones in children due to deficiency or impaired metabolism of vitamin D, magnesium , phosphorus or calcium, potentially leading to fractures and deformity. Rickets is among the most frequent childhood diseases in many developing countries... - 1921 – Frederick BantingFrederick BantingSir Frederick Grant Banting, KBE, MC, FRS, FRSC was a Canadian medical scientist, doctor and Nobel laureate noted as one of the main discoverers of insulin....
and Charles Best discover insulinInsulinInsulin is a hormone central to regulating carbohydrate and fat metabolism in the body. Insulin causes cells in the liver, muscle, and fat tissue to take up glucose from the blood, storing it as glycogen in the liver and muscle....
– important for the treatment of diabetes - 1921 – Fidel PagésFidel PagésFidel Pagés Miravé was a Spanish military surgeon, known for developing the technique of epidural anesthesia....
pioneers epidural anesthesia - 1923 – First vaccine for DiphtheriaDiphtheriaDiphtheria is an upper respiratory tract illness caused by Corynebacterium diphtheriae, a facultative anaerobic, Gram-positive bacterium. It is characterized by sore throat, low fever, and an adherent membrane on the tonsils, pharynx, and/or nasal cavity...
- 1926 – First vaccine for PertussisPertussisPertussis, also known as whooping cough , is a highly contagious bacterial disease caused by Bordetella pertussis. Symptoms are initially mild, and then develop into severe coughing fits, which produce the namesake high-pitched "whoop" sound in infected babies and children when they inhale air...
- 1927 – First vaccine for TuberculosisTuberculosisTuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
- 1927 – First vaccine for TetanusTetanusTetanus is a medical condition characterized by a prolonged contraction of skeletal muscle fibers. The primary symptoms are caused by tetanospasmin, a neurotoxin produced by the Gram-positive, rod-shaped, obligate anaerobic bacterium Clostridium tetani...
- 1928 – Alexander FlemingAlexander FlemingSir Alexander Fleming was a Scottish biologist and pharmacologist. He wrote many articles on bacteriology, immunology, and chemotherapy...
discovers penicillinPenicillinPenicillin is a group of antibiotics derived from Penicillium fungi. They include penicillin G, procaine penicillin, benzathine penicillin, and penicillin V.... - 1929 – Hans BergerHans BergerHans Berger was born in Neuses near Coburg, Bavaria, Germany. He is best known as the first to record human electroencephalograms in 1924, for which he invented the electroencephalogram , and the discoverer of the alpha wave rhythm known as "Berger's wave".- Biography :After attending...
discovers human electroencephalographyElectroencephalographyElectroencephalography is the recording of electrical activity along the scalp. EEG measures voltage fluctuations resulting from ionic current flows within the neurons of the brain... - 1932 – Gerhard DomagkGerhard DomagkGerhard Johannes Paul Domagk was a German pathologist and bacteriologist credited with the discovery of Sulfonamidochrysoidine – the first commercially available antibiotic – for which he received the 1939 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.Domagk was born in Lagow, Brandenburg, the...
develops a chemotherapeutic cure for streptococcusStreptococcusStreptococcus is a genus of spherical Gram-positive bacteria belonging to the phylum Firmicutes and the lactic acid bacteria group. Cellular division occurs along a single axis in these bacteria, and thus they grow in chains or pairs, hence the name — from Greek στρεπτος streptos, meaning... - 1933 – Manfred SakelManfred Sakel*Fink, M , "Meduna and the Origins of Convulsive Therapy", American Journal of Psychiatry, 141: 1034-1041 *Fink, M (1984), "Meduna and the Origins of Convulsive Therapy", American Journal of Psychiatry, 141(9): 1034-1041 *Fink, M (1984), "Meduna and the Origins of Convulsive Therapy", American...
discovers insulin shock therapyInsulin shock therapyInsulin shock therapy or insulin coma therapy was a form of psychiatric treatment in which patients were repeatedly injected with large doses of insulin in order to produce daily comas over several weeks... - 1935 – Ladislas J. MedunaLadislas J. MedunaLadislas J. Meduna was a Hungarian neurologist and neuropathologist noted for his development of shock treatment for persons suffering from schizophrenia.Meduna was born to a well-to-do family in Budapest, Hungary, in 1896...
discovers metrazol shock therapyElectroconvulsive therapyElectroconvulsive therapy , formerly known as electroshock, is a psychiatric treatment in which seizures are electrically induced in anesthetized patients for therapeutic effect. Its mode of action is unknown... - 1935 – First vaccine for Yellow FeverYellow feverYellow fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic disease. The virus is a 40 to 50 nm enveloped RNA virus with positive sense of the Flaviviridae family....
- 1936 – Egas MonizEgas MonizAntónio Caetano de Abreu Freire Egas Moniz , known as Egas Moniz , was a Portuguese neurologist and the developer of cerebral angiography...
discovers prefrontal lobotomyLobotomyLobotomy "; τομή – tomē: "cut/slice") is a neurosurgical procedure, a form of psychosurgery, also known as a leukotomy or leucotomy . It consists of cutting the connections to and from the prefrontal cortex, the anterior part of the frontal lobes of the brain...
for treating mental diseases; Enrique Finochietto develops the now ubiquitous self-retaining thoracic retractor - 1938 – Ugo CerlettiUgo CerlettiUgo Cerletti was an Italian neurologist who discovered the method of electroconvulsive therapy in psychiatry. Electroconvulsive therapy is a procedure in which electric currents are passed through the brain, deliberately triggering a brief seizure...
and Lucio BiniLucio BiniLucio Bini was an Italian psychiatrist and professor at the University of Rome La Sapienza, Italy. Together with Ugo Cerletti, a neurophysiologist, he researched and discovered the method of electroconvulsive therapy, a kind of shock therapy for mental diseases.-References:*Kalinowsky, LB: Lucio...
discover electroconvulsive therapyElectroconvulsive therapyElectroconvulsive therapy , formerly known as electroshock, is a psychiatric treatment in which seizures are electrically induced in anesthetized patients for therapeutic effect. Its mode of action is unknown... - 1943 – Willem J Kolff build the first dialysis machine
- 1944 - Disposable Catheter - David Sheridan [18]
- 1946 - Chemotherapy - Alfred Gilman and Louis S Goodman [18]
- 1947 - Defibrillator - Claude Beck [18]
- 1948 - Acetaminophen - Julis Axelrod [18]
- 1949 – First implant of intraocular lensIntraocular lensAn intraocular lens is an implanted lens in the eye, usually replacing the existing crystalline lens because it has been clouded over by a cataract, or as a form of refractive surgery to change the eye's optical power. It usually consists of a small plastic lens with plastic side struts, called...
, by Sir Harold RidleyHarold Ridley (ophthalmologist)Sir Nicholas Harold Lloyd Ridley was an English ophthalmologist who pioneered artificial intraocular lens transplant surgery for cataract patients.-Early years:... - 1949 - Ventilator - Jone Emerson [18]
- 1952 – Jonas SalkJonas SalkJonas Edward Salk was an American medical researcher and virologist, best known for his discovery and development of the first safe and effective polio vaccine. He was born in New York City to parents from Ashkenazi Jewish Russian immigrant families...
develops the first polio vaccine - 1952 - Cloning - Robert Briggs & Thomas King [18]
- 1953 - Heart-Lung Machine - Dr John Heysham Gibbon [18]
- 1953 - Medical Ultrasonography - Inge Edler [18]
- 1954 - Joseph MurrayJoseph MurrayJoseph Edward Murray is a retired American plastic surgeon. He performed the first successful human kidney transplant on identical twins on December 23, 1954....
performs the first human kidney transplant (on identical twins) - 1954 - Ventouse - Tage Malmstrom [18]
- 1955 - Tetracycline - Lloyd Conover [18]
- 1956 - Beta Blockers - Sir James Black [18]
- 1956 - Metered Dose Inhaler - 3M [18]
- 1956 - Synthetic Blood - Thomas Chan [18]
- 1957 – William Grey WalterWilliam Grey WalterW. Grey Walter was a neurophysiologist and robotician.-Overview:Walter was born in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1910. His ancestry was German/British on his father's side, and American/British on his mother's side. He was brought to England in 1915, and educated at Westminster School and afterwards...
invents the brain EEG topographyElectroencephalographyElectroencephalography is the recording of electrical activity along the scalp. EEG measures voltage fluctuations resulting from ionic current flows within the neurons of the brain...
(toposcope) - 1958 - PacemakerPacemakerAn artificial pacemaker is a medical device that uses electrical impulses to regulate the beating of the heart.Pacemaker may also refer to:-Medicine:...
- Rune Elmqvist - 1959 - In Vitro Fertilization - Min Chueh Chang [18]
- 1960 – Invention of Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)
- 1960 – First combined oral contraceptive approved by the FDA
- 1962 - Hip Replacement - John Charnley [18]
- 1962 – First Oral Polio VaccinePolio vaccineTwo polio vaccines are used throughout the world to combat poliomyelitis . The first was developed by Jonas Salk and first tested in 1952. Announced to the world by Salk on April 12, 1955, it consists of an injected dose of inactivated poliovirus. An oral vaccine was developed by Albert Sabin...
- 1963 - Artificial Heart - Paul Winchell [18]
- 1963 - Thomas StarzlThomas StarzlThomas E. Starzl is an American physician, researcher, and is an expert on organ transplants. He performed the first human liver transplants, and has often been referred to as "the father of modern transplantation."-Life:...
performs the first human liver transplant - 1963 - James HardyJames Hardy (surgeon)Dr. James D. Hardy was an American surgeon, famous for the first human lung transplant and the first animal-to-human heart transplant.- Early life :...
performs the first human lung transplant - 1963 - Valium (diazepam) - Leo H Sternbach [18]
- 1964 – First vaccine for MeaslesMeaslesMeasles, also known as rubeola or morbilli, is an infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus, specifically a paramyxovirus of the genus Morbillivirus. Morbilliviruses, like other paramyxoviruses, are enveloped, single-stranded, negative-sense RNA viruses...
- 1965 – Frank PantridgeFrank PantridgeProfessor James Francis "Frank" Pantridge, MD, CBE was a physician and cardiologist from Northern Ireland who transformed emergency medicine and paramedic services with the invention of the portable defibrillator....
installs the first portable defibrillator - 1965 - Rubella Vaccine - Harry Martin Meyer [18]
- 1965 – First commercial ultrasoundUltrasoundUltrasound is cyclic sound pressure with a frequency greater than the upper limit of human hearing. Ultrasound is thus not separated from "normal" sound based on differences in physical properties, only the fact that humans cannot hear it. Although this limit varies from person to person, it is...
- 1966 - Richard Lillehei performs the first human pancreas transplant
- 1967 – First vaccine for MumpsMumpsMumps is a viral disease of the human species, caused by the mumps virus. Before the development of vaccination and the introduction of a vaccine, it was a common childhood disease worldwide...
- 1967 – Christiaan BarnardChristiaan BarnardChristiaan Neethling Barnard was a South African cardiac surgeon who performed the world's first successful human-to-human heart transplant.- Early life :...
performs the first human heart transplant - 1968 - Powered Prothesis - Samuel Alderson [18]
- 1968 - Controlled Drug Delivery - Alejandro Zaffaroni [18]
- 1969 - Internet - Advanced Research Project Agency (ARPA) [18]
- 1969 - Balloon Catheter - Thomas Fogarty [18]
- 1969 - Cochlear Implant - William House [18]
- 1970 – First vaccine for RubellaRubellaRubella, commonly known as German measles, is a disease caused by the rubella virus. The name "rubella" is derived from the Latin, meaning little red. Rubella is also known as German measles because the disease was first described by German physicians in the mid-eighteenth century. This disease is...
- 1970 - Cyclosporine, the first effective immunosuppressive drugImmunosuppressive drugImmunosuppressive drugs or immunosuppressive agents are drugs that inhibit or prevent activity of the immune system. They are used in immunosuppressive therapy to:...
is introduced in organ transplantOrgan transplantOrgan transplantation is the moving of an organ from one body to another or from a donor site on the patient's own body, for the purpose of replacing the recipient's damaged or absent organ. The emerging field of regenerative medicine is allowing scientists and engineers to create organs to be...
practice - 1971 - Genetically Modified Organisms - Ananda Chakrabart [18]
- 1971 - Magnetic Resonance Imaging - Raymond Vahan Damadian [18]
- 1971 - Computed Tomography (CT or CAT Scan) - Godfrey Hounsfield [18]
- 1971 - Transdermal Patches - Alejandro Zaffaroni [18]
- 1971 – Sir Godfrey HounsfieldGodfrey HounsfieldSir Godfrey Newbold Hounsfield CBE, FRS, was an English electrical engineer who shared the 1979 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine with Allan McLeod Cormack for his part in developing the diagnostic technique of X-ray computed tomography .His name is immortalised in the Hounsfield scale, a...
invents the first commercial CT scanner - 1972 - Insulin Pump - Dean Kamen [18]
- 1973 - Laser Eye Surgery - Mani Lai Bhaumik [18]
- 1974 - Liposuction - Giorgio Fischer [18]
- 1976 – First commercial PET scanner
- 1978 – Last fatal case of smallpoxSmallpoxSmallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...
- 1979 Antiviral Drugs - George Hitchings & Gertrude Elion [18]
- 1980 – Raymond Damadian builds first commercial MRI scanner
- 1980 - Lithotripter - Dornier Research Group [18]
- 1980 – First vaccine for Hepatitis BHepatitis B vaccineHepatitis B vaccine is a vaccine developed for the prevention of hepatitis B virus infection. The vaccine contains one of the viral envelope proteins, hepatitis B surface antigen . It is produced by yeast cells, into which the genetic code for HBsAg has been inserted...
- Dr Baruch Blimberg [18] - 1981 - Artificial Skin - John F Burke & Ioannis V Yannas [18]
- 1981 - Bruce ReitzBruce ReitzBruce Reitz is a Board Certified Cardiothoracic Surgeon. Reitz is one of the foremost cardiac surgeons in the world and, during his term as chairman of the Department of Cardiothoracic surgery, he played a major role in keeping Stanford at the forefront of education, research and patient care in...
performs the first human heart-lung combined transplant - 1982 - Humulin insulin - Eli Lilly [18]
- Interferon Cloning - Dr Sidney Pestika [18]
- 1985 - Automated DNA Sequencer - Leroy Hood & Lloyd Smith [18]
- 1985 - Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) - Kaery Mullis [18]
- 1985 - Surgical Robot - Dr Yik San Kwoh [18]
- 1985 - DNA Fingerprinting - Alec Jeffreys [18]
- 1985 - Capsule Endoscopy - Tarun Mullick [18]
- 1986 - Fluoxetine HCl - Eli Lilly and Co [18]
- 1987 – Ben CarsonBen CarsonBenjamin Solomon "Ben" Carson, Sr., M.D., is an American neurosurgeon and the Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the United States by President George W...
, leading a 70-member medical team in Germany, was the first to separate occipital craniopagus twinsCraniopagus twinsCraniopagus twins are conjoined twins who are conjoined at the cranium. This condition occurs in conjoined twin in about 1 in every 2,500,000 births...
. - 1987 - Statins - Merck & Co. [18]
- 1987 - Tissue Engineering - Joseph Vacanti & Robert Langer [18]
- 1988 - Intravascular Stent - Julio Palmaz [18]
- 1988 - Laser Cataract Surgery - Dr Patricia Bath [18]
- 1989 - Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) - Alan Handyside [18]
- 1989 - DNA Microarray - Stephen Fodor [18]
- 1989 - World Wide Web WWW - Tim Berners-Lee [18]
- 1990 - Gamow Bag ® - Dr Igor Gamow [18]
- 1992 – First vaccine for Hepatitis AHepatitis A vaccineHepatitis A vaccine is a vaccine against the hepatitis A virus. The first successful vaccine against it was invented by Maurice Hilleman at Merck. The vaccine protects against the virus in more than 95% of cases and provides protection from the virus for at least ten years...
available - 1992 - Electroactive Polymer (Artificial Muscle) - SRI International [18]
- 1992 - Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) - Andre van Steirteghem [18]
- 1998 - Stem Cell Therapy - James Thomson [18]
2000 – present
- 26 June 2000 - Human Genome draft completed
- 2001 Telesurgery - Jacques Marescaux [18]
- 2001 Artificial Liver - Kenneth Matsumura [18]
- 2001 Self-Healing Materials Scott White [18]
- 2002 Chitosan Bandages by HemCon [18]
- 2003 – Carlo UrbaniCarlo UrbaniCarlo Urbani was an Italian physician and the first to identify severe acute respiratory syndrome as a new and dangerously contagious disease...
, of Doctors without Borders alerted the World Health OrganizationWorld Health OrganizationThe World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...
to the threat of the SARS virus, triggering the most effective response to an epidemic in history. Urbani succumbs to the disease himself in less than a month. - 2005 – Jean-Michel Dubernard performs the first partial face transplantFace transplantA face transplant is a still-experimental procedure to replace all or part of a person's face. The world's first full face transplant was completed in Spain in 2010.-Beneficiaries of face transplant:...
- 2006 – First HPV vaccineHPV vaccineThe human papilloma virus vaccine prevents infection with certain species of human papillomavirus associated with the development of cervical cancer, genital warts, and some less common cancers...
approved - 2006 – Second rotavirus vaccine approved (first was withdrawn)
- 2007 - Visual Prosthetic (bionic eye)Argus II [18]
- 2008 – Laurent Lantieri performs the first full face transplantFace transplantA face transplant is a still-experimental procedure to replace all or part of a person's face. The world's first full face transplant was completed in Spain in 2010.-Beneficiaries of face transplant:...
Footnote
1. The dates given for these medical works are uncertain. A Tribute to Hinduism suggests that Sushruta lived in the 5th century BC.External links
- Interactive timeline of medicine and medical technology (requires Flash plugin)