The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1886-03-31
PAIN KILLERS.
strsns Anmsthctlcs Used In DelIcate SHr.
gicnl Operations.

General ausesthesia for surgical opera
tion vas irst produced by DIR. Crawford
W. Long, of Jefferson. Ga, in 1912, by ad-
ministering sulphuric ether by inhalation.
In 1912, and 1S43 DIR. Long used the same
method on four other patients, but he
lived in remote region and did not make
his discovery known by publication. The
use of laughing gas as an exhilarant was
known for many years, and used as means
of drawing a crowd by itinerant lecturers,
but its property of preventing pain was not
known until 1874. At one of these per-
formances Horace Wells, dentist of Hart
ford, Conn, noticed that the individuals
were insensible to the pains of bruises, &C.,
from falls which they experienced while
under its influence. Wells used it upon
himself and then upon several patients, ex-
tracing teeth with perfect success so far as
preventing pain was concerned. He went
TO Boston to introduce his method, but his
failure to prevent subjects of surgical
operations from crying out and showing
signs of feeling pain prevented the intro
duction of the new method at that time
Wells died in 1913 without knowing the
Importance of his services to humanity.
One Of his pupils, W. T. G. Morton, had
made experiments with ether at the sugges-
ton of prominent chemist of Boston, DIR.
Charles L. jackson, and produced COM
plete insensibility upon himself on Septem-
Der 80, 1916. The next day he gave IL to
man and removed the offending tooth with
out any pain. On October 16, 1916, lie
gave ether for the removal of tumor by
DIR. j, G. Warren, of Boston, with complete
success, and surgical anasthesia became an
accepted fact.
London medical student, Furnell by
mama, had discovered that the inhalation
of chloroform produced insensibility, and
this substance was used in st. Bartholo-
news Hospital, by Sir w. Lawrence and
others, in surgical operations during the
last of 1896 Sir J. Y. Simpson, of Edin-
burgh, used il ON about fifty patients in the
following year with the most satisfactory
results, and published his celebrated paper
upon it November IT, 1S47. The occur
renee of large number of deaths from its
use has produced reaction in favor of
suphuric ether in England and the United
States, but in France and Germany choro-
form retains its place as the preferable an
aesthetic. The eass with which II is given,
the small quantity required, the pleasant
effects and the certainty with which it
aecomplishes insensiblity to pain COM
mend it 10 those who value ease and GER
tainty above safety. Many surgeons have
given il to thousand of cnses without ever
having to lament fatal accident But if
the experience OF the world is worth any,
thing, chloroform should never be given.
II is treacherous agent and often kills,
while the deaths from ether are as few as
those from extracting teeth without the use
of any anesthetic. Nitrous oxide {" laugh
ing gas " is preferable to ether in all short
operations, and Paul Bert, Of Paris, has
shown that if IL is mixed with pure oxygen
and properly administered, its effects
mny be indefinitely prolonged without dam
ger, and there are no bad effects to be fear
ed after the artificial sleep has passed off.
Many other chemicals have been tested as
anmsthetics, but none of them offer any adj
vantages over those already named, while
some of them are more dangerous than
chloroform or ether and others are more
costly.-St. Louis Globe Democrat.