Volume 37 - History of Anaesthesia Society

134 Pages·2008·6.88 MB·English

ISSN l 360-6891
THE HISTORY OF
ANAESTHESIA SOCIETY
PROCEEDINGS
Vohme 37
Proceedings of the Summer Scientific Meeting
West Park Centre, University of Dundee
29th and 30th June 2007
Contents of Volume 37
Page
Dundee Meeting Acknowledgements 3
Council, Officers, Honorary Members 4
Editorial and Future Meetings 5
Dundee Meeting - speakers' photographs 6
Members and guests attending 8
Papers given at the Dundee Meetinp
Dr Stuart McGowan
The History of Dundee Royal Infirmary
Anaesthesia in Dundee (1847 - 1964)
Prof A Dronsfield and Prof P Ellis
Cocaine to novocaine a chemical journey
-
Dr E Armitage
Three anaesthetic registers from King's
Dr A Padfield
The apparatus of Dupuy de Frenelle
Prof Sir MK Sykes
The European Research Group on Respiratory Intensive Care 62
Dr I Levack
Victoria, Lister and chloroform at Balmoral 73
Dr AG McKenzie
The Gillies anaesthetic machine
Dr Jean Horton
Some interesting neuroanaesthetic techniques developed in
Edinburgh in the 1960s 8 1
Dr I McLellan
Pain relief at the end of life some historical cases 8 8
-
Dr H Connor
Was it really'amylene which killed John Snow's patients? 92
Dr Ann Ferguson and Prof A Dronsfield
Murder by curare?
Dr A Kuipers
The last death from a static anaesthetic explosion in
Great Britain? 108
Dr D Wright and Mr I Milne
Simpson's last illness
Dr Aileen Adams
Shackleton, his surgeons and Dundee
Dr D Wilkinson
Anaesthesia in Antarctica
Mr M Wilson (Guest Lecture)
To the Antarctic with Scott and Discovery
Prof D Pounder (Guest Lecture)
Murder by chloroform
Book Review
Anaesthesia and the Practice of Medicine: Historical Perspectives.
Sykes K, Bunker JP. London, RSM Press Ltd., 2007. 132
Congratulations are in order for our President, Dr David Wilkinson, who has
been awarded the Wood Library-Museum Laureate in the History of
Anaesthesia for 2008.
HISTORY OF ANAESTHESIA SOCIETY
2007 Summer Scientific Meeting, West Park Centre, University of Dundee
28-30 June 2007
Organiser: Prof JAW Wildsmith
The Organiser is very grateful for the assistance of Mrs Marie Thomson,
Secretary to the University Department of Anaesthesia, all the staff of the
West Park Centre and Mrs Fay Wildsmith.
The Society would like to thank the following for generous support:
BMS Pain Management
GE Healthcare
Glaxo-Smith-Kline
Pajunk UK
Royal Society of Medicine Press
Proceedings of the History of Anaesthesia Society
Hon Editor: Dr Alistair McKenzie
9 Craiglockhart Avenue
Edinburgh EH14 IHN
E-mail: [email protected]
The Society acknowledges with thanks the photographs taken by Dr Geoff Hall-
Davies.
HISTORY OF ANAESTHESIA SOCIETY
Council and Officers -July 2007
President Dr David Wilkinson, Bishop's Stortford
President-Elect Prof J Anthony W Wildsmith, Dundee
Honorary Secretary Dr Anne Florence, Cheshire
Honorary Treasurer and
Membership Secretary Dr Adrian Kuipers, Shrewsbury
Honorary Editor Dr Alistair McKenzie, Edinburgh
Assistant Honorary Secretary Dr Ann Ferguson, Broadstairs
Council Members Dr Henry Connor, Hereford
Dr Gary Enever, Newcastle
Dr Paul Goulden, Dewsbury
Dr Moyna Barton, London
Dr Kenneth Macleod, Huntingdon
Dr Patrick Magee, Bath
Mrs Patricia Willis, London
Honorary Members
UK & Ireland Dr Aileen Adams CBE
Dr Thomas Boulton OBE TD
Prof Cecil Gray
Dr Jean Horton
Dr Ian McLellan
Dr David Zuck
Prof Sir M Keith Sykes
Honorary Members Overseas Prof Jean Lassner, St Vincent-le-Paluel
Dr Lucien Morris, Washington
Prof John Severinghaus, San Francisco
Prof Doreen Vermeulen Cranch, Elburg
EDITORIAL
The Dundee meeting hosted by Prof Tony Wildsmith was well organised and
entertaining. Friday began with notes on Dundee's medical and anaesthetic
history by Stuart McGowan. This was followed by papers on a miscellany of
topics, including three on Scottish connections.
After lunch there were four papers on the involvement of anaesthetic agents in
death. Next, there were two presentations on anaesthesia in Antarctica, which
whet the appetite of the audience for the evening visit to Discoveiy. On a
glorious summer evening, dressed for the HAS dinner, the delegates and guests
were treated to a champagne reception on board Discovery. Guides conducted
rewarding tours of the vessel for small groups. Photographs have been posted on
the HAS website.
Saturday started with the AGM. The members observed a minute's silence in
memory of the late Hon Member, Douglas Howat, who died in November 2006.
Prof Tony Wildsmith accepted nomination as the President-Elect. A warm
citation was delivered by Aileen Adams to our latest Hon Member, Prof Sir
Keith Sykes.
To conclude the meeting there were two guest lectures. Mr Michael Wilson, a
member of RSGS and tour guide on RRS Discovey, gave a riveting account of
Scott and Discovely. Prof Demck Pounder delivered a fascinating and insightful
talk on murders involving chloroform, and the forensic implications thereof.
Note that Stuart McGowan's two papers comprise far more detail than his
presentation. Funding from Dundee was provided to facilitate printing the larger
volume.
Alistair G McKenzie
Hon Editor
FUTURE EVENTS
2008 26 -28 June. HAS Summer Meeting, York
Contact: Dr Paul Goulden (F
6
Speakers at Dundee
Prof JAW Wildsmith Dr S McGowan Prof A Dronsfield
Dr E Armitage Dr A Padfield Prof Sir MK Sykes
Dr I Levack Dr AG McKenzie Dr Jean Horton
7
Speakers at Dundee
Dr I McLellan Dr H Connor Dr Ann Ferguson
Dr A Kuipers Dr D Wright Dr Aileen Adams
Dr D Wilkinson Mr M Wilson Prof D Pounder
Members and guests attending Dundee meeting
Dr Catherine Adam Leven Dr Jenny Meek Kinghorn
Dr Aileen Adams Cambridge Dr Ronald Millar W. Horsely
Dr Neil Adams Bury St Edrnunds Dr Peter Morris Leicester
Dr JM Anderton Altrincham Dr James Mulvein Bristol
Dr Edward Armitage West Sussex Dr Angela Murray Liverpool
Dr Douglas Bacon Rochester USA Dr Tony Nightingale Liverpool
Dr Marshall Barr Reading Dr Aidan O'Donnell Livingston
Dr Moyna Barton London Dr Adrian Padfield Sheffield
Dr Colin Birt Rochford Dr Eric Plumpton Sussex
Dr John Blizzard Chelmsford Dr Yash Pole Manchester
Dr Tom Boulton Reading Dr John Pring Penzance
Dr Henry Connor Hereford Dr Jean Robson Guildford
Dr Ian Coral1 London Dr Nigel Rose Ledbury
Prof Alan Dronsfield Derby Dr Miles Rucklidge Lancaster
Dr Gary Enever Newcastle Dr Priti Shah Stockport
Dr Ann Ferguson Broadstairs Dr Janti Shah Birmingham
Dr h eFlo rence Liverpool Dr Ian Smith Aberdeen
Dr Richard Gabriel Cheltenham Prof Alastair Spence Kilrnacolrn
Dr Veera Gopakumar Walsall Dr Charles Swithinbank Cambridge
Dr Geoff Hall-Davies Redditch Prof Sir Keith Sykes Devon
Dr Helen Hannah Chippenham Dr Alistair Trench Dunblane
Dr Jean Horton Cambridge Dr Maureen Van Ryssen W. Sussex
Dr Glenys Jones Edinburgh Dr Barbara Weaver Winscombe
Dr Adrian Kuipers Shrewsbury Dr David White Beaconsfield
Dr Iain Levack Dundee . Dr Malcolm White Cleveland
Dr David McCallurn Edinburgh Prof Tony Wildsmith Dundee
Dr John McClure Edinburgh Dr David Wilkinson Bishop's
Dr Stuart McGowan Dundee Stortford
Dr Ian McLellan Dorset Mrs Patricia Willis London
Dr Alistair McKenzie Edinburgh Dr Catherine Wisely Westcliffe
Dr John McLaren Edinburgh Dr David Wright Edinburgh
Dr Kenneth Macleod Huntingdon Dr Tod Young Altrincharn
Guest Lecturers:
Mr Michael Wilson, Dundee
Prof Demck Pounder, Dundee
THE HISTORY OF DUNDEE ROYAL INFIRMARY
Dr Stuart McGowan, Dundee
Especially in recent years, you hear people complain about the National Health
Service and talk affectionately about 'the good old days', but I doubt very much
if they would be thinking about 18" century Dundee. Dr Johnson, who visited
the burgh in 1773, described it as "dirty and despicable" and, earlier, Mary
Queen of Scots had wrinkled her nose in disgust at the odours which came from
the middens in its principal streets. Epidemics of cholera, smallpox and other
fevers occurred frequently, with the poor suffering most when illness struck
because they could not afford medical advice and treatment. For them there was
no hospital or nursing home available and the situation was remedied only when
a group of compassionate and benevolent individuals, headed by the Reverend
Dr. Small, minister of St Mary's Church, raised a subscription to establish a
dispensary in 1782.
The town was divided into a number of districts, and one physician or surgeon
was allocated to each. They not only prescribed for those who called on them,
but visited the poor in their own houses. The scheme was so successful that Dr
Small suggested founding an Infirmary, and a committee was formed in 1793 to
raise the money for this. Soon they were able to purchase a site, between King
Street and Victoria Road, and an architect drew up plans - a central pavilion
with projecting wings at the east and west ends. It was to be two stories high,
with a basement and attic, but only the central portion was built at first, the
wings being added in 1825 and 1827.
Originally, the Infirmary could accommodate 56 patients, the first being
admitted in 1798, and the total rose to 120 when the wings were added. Each
ward could take ten beds, and there was an excellent operating theatre with roof
lights and a rail round the table to save the surgeon being pressed upon too
closely by the spectators. However, the dispensary did not close when the
Infirmary was up and running. On the contrary, the dispensary surgeons
attended to thousands of outpatients each year, and it continued to operate right
up until 1914 when the National Insurance Act rendered it obsolete.
A housekeeper-matron, one or two nurses and a resident apothecary were
appointed to the Infirmary together with two visiting physicians and seven
visiting surgeons. The surgeons took charge of all the patients in rotation for a
month at a time and performed any operations that were needed during that
period. In the beginning the physicians had light duties and visited the hospital
once or twice a week.