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6500 BCE
Signs of Rudimentary Surgery
The first ever skulls were found in France which showed signs of a rudimentary surgery called trepanation. This method involved drilling a hole in the skull. -
1540 BCE
Formation of the United Barber-Surgeons Company
English surgeons and barbers united to form The United Barber-Surgeons Company. Together these barber-surgeons performed tooth extractions and bloodletting (withdrawal of blood from a patient to prevent or cure illness and disease). -
First Transfusion of Human Blood
A British obstetrician by the name James Blundell successfully transfused human blood to a patient who had hemorrhaged (an escape of blood from a ruptured blood vessel) during childbirth. -
Period: to
The 1800's
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First Hysterectomy Performed
Charles Clay, an English surgeon, also known as the "Father of Ovariotomy" performed the first ever hysterectomy in Manchester, England. -
Anesthesia First Used
Ether was used as the first anesthetic publicly during a surgery. The patient was conscious but didn't experience any pain during the procedure to remove a tumor in his neck. -
Drastic Decrease in the Mortality Rate for Surgical Patients
British surgeon Joseph Lister published a book called "Antiseptic Principle in the Practice of Surgery", this book outlined all the measures of cleanliness to be taken for a surgical procedure. Because of this, the mortality rate for surgical patients immediately fell. -
First Appendectomy Performed
First successful appendectomy was performed by Dr. William West Grant, in Iowa. -
First Successful Heart Surgery Performed
First successful heart surgery was performed at the Provident Hospital in Chicago. Even though the surgery repaired the pericardium (the sac around the heart), many did not consider this to be the first successful "heart surgery" because the heart itself as an organ was not operated on. -
First X-ray Performed
The first ever X-ray was performed by a physicist named Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen at the University of Würzburg in Germany. -
Another Successful Heart Surgery
Surgeons in Germany repaired a stab wound in the muscle of the right ventricle. -
Cornea Transplant
First successful cornea transplant surgery was performed by an Austrian ophthalmologist Eduard Zirm, who transplanted the cornea's in both eyes of a man who had previously been blinded. -
Period: to
The 1900's
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Plastic Surgery
First documented plastic surgery was performed on a burned English sailor. -
Discovery of Antibiotics
Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin, an antibiotic due to which a significant decrease in the rate of mortality due to infections was seen. -
Gender Change Operation
First sex-change operation (male to female) took place in Germany. -
Metal Hip Replacement Surgery
The first metal hip replacement surgery was performed by an American Surgeon, Dr. Austin T. Moore at Columbia Hospital in Columbia, South Carolina. -
Organ Transplant
First successful organ transplant took place. The kidney recipient rejected the organ after eight months. -
Actual Heart Surgery
First ever successful heart surgery was performed where the heart was stopped and restarted. -
Pancreas Transplant
The first successful pancreas transplant ever was performed at the University of Minnesota. R. Lillehei and W. Kelly transplanted a kidney and a pancreas in a diabetic patient on dialysis, getting function of both organs. -
Liver Transplant
First ever successful liver transplant. -
In Vitro Fertilization
First "test-tube" baby was born using in vitro fertilization technique. -
Robotic Surgery
First robotic surgery was documented. -
Hand Transplant
First successful hand transplant (previous patients had rejected their grafts). -
Win of a Robotic Surgical System
Da Vinci robotic surgical system won U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval. This system is now used in a wide variety of procedures, including prostate surgeries and coronary artery bypass. -
Period: to
The 2000's
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Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscopic Surgery
First natural orifice transluminal (experimental surgical technique whereby "scarless" abdominal operations can be performed) endoscopic surgery performed. This technique uses a natural body opening, such as the mouth, to insert instruments and minimize recovery times. -
Near-Total Full Face Transplant
Connie Culp, a U.S resident was the first person to receive a near-total full face transplant in the United States. This procedure was performed at The Cleveland Clinic. -
Actual Full Face Transplant
World's first ever full-face transplant performed was in Spain. -
Nerve Transfer Procedure
A nerve transfer procedure was done which gave a paraplegic (affected by or relating to paralysis of the legs and lower body) patient the ability to move their hands.
