Joseph Lister

Joseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister,  (5 April 182710 February 1912) was a British surgeon and a pioneer of antiseptic surgery.Between 1883 and 1897 he was known as Sir Joseph Lister, Bt.

He promoted the idea of sterile surgery while working at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary. Lister successfully introduced carbolic acid (phenol) to sterilise surgical instruments and to clean wounds.

Applying Louis Pasteur's advances in microbiology, Lister championed the use of carbolic acid as an antiseptic, so that it became the first widely used antiseptic in surgery. 

He knew it was used to ease the stench from fields irrigated with sewage waste.  He thought it was safe because fields treated with carbolic acid had no ill-effects on the livestock that grazed on them.

By 1890, Lister stopped using carbolic acid, due to the dangerous side effects for both patient and surgeon. Rather, he began to use a mask and surgical gloves to prevent infection. 

Lister's work led to a reduction in post-operative infections (infections after an operation). This made surgery safer for patients. So he became known as the "father of modern surgery".

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Category:1827 births
Category:1912 deaths
Category:Fellows of the Royal Society
Category:Presidents of the Royal Society
Category:British surgeons