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UNIT 3& SOURCE SKILLS

Dealing witIt- pain

Before effective anaesthetics, sur~ery was very crude and very painful.

Search for an anaesthetie., _

Before 1600 alcohol and opium had little success in easing pain during operations.

Opposition to anaesthetics
People were worried about the lon~-term effects of usin~ them. Some doctors thought bein~ unconscious made patients more likely to die. Chloroform use resulted in more complex operations which led to ~reater blood loss and infection. The number of resultin~ deaths scared people. Also, the Victorians were very reli~ious and thought that God inflicted pain for a reason, so it was wron~ to interfere.

Laughi~ ga~ wa~ u5ed in 1644 in dentistry in the USA, but failed to ease all pain and patients remained conscious.

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Ether (u5ed from 1846) made patients totally unconscious and lasted a long time. However, it could makepatients cough during operations and sick afterwards. It was highly flammable and was transported in heavy glass bottles.

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Chlorofonn (u5ed from 1847) was very effective with few side effects. However, it was difficult to get the dose right and could kill some people because of the effect on their heart. An I inhaler helped to regulate the d05age. ,

Cocaine was used ae the fir5t local anaesthetic in 1884. In 1905 a leee addictive vereion novocaine - was used as a general anaesthetic.
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James SimPSOD Simpson was the first man to be k:n1ghted for services to medicine. He looked for solutions to pain during surgery. He discovered chloroform, then wrote articles and gave lectures to promote its use for surgery and childbirth.
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--------------------------------------8efore anaeethetIc:e
Impact of ....

t:het:Ica

Sur~ery was extremely painful and many patients died from shock. Sur~eons worked fast to minimise pain and blood loss. Patients had to be held down, which made it difficult for sur~eons.

Sur~ery became pain free.

Sur~eons could take more time and be more careful thou~h still had to deal with blood loss. Patients didn't strug~le, so sur~eons found operations easier. _ Deeper surgery was possible, increasinq the risk of infection. This led to the 'black period' of sur~ery.

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Mo_s..t_operation_s were amputations or close to the surface of the body.

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What is the purpose of Source A? How does it try to achieve it?

SourceA: From 'On a new anaesthetic agent, more efficient than sulphuric ether' by James Simpson, writing in the Lancet (a medical journal). 1848.
As an anaesthetic agent, chloroform possesses, I believe, all the advantages of ether. A greatly less quantity is needed to produce the anaesthetic effect. Its action is more rapid and complete, and generally more persistent. People who have used ether strongly declare it's [chloroform is] far more agreeable and pleasant.

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