Crawford Long

Crawford Long

Crawford Long was an American surgeon and pharmacist best known for his pioneering use of ether as a surgical anesthetic. Born in 1815 in Danielsville, Georgia, Long received his medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1839. He began his medical practice in Jefferson, Georgia, where he noticed that participants in ether frolics - recreational gatherings where people inhaled ether for its intoxicating effects - seemed to be impervious to pain. This observation led him to hypothesize that ether could be used as a surgical anesthetic. On March 30, 1842, Long successfully used ether to anesthetize a patient before removing a tumor from the patient's neck, marking the first documented use of ether anesthesia in surgery. Despite this groundbreaking achievement, Long did not immediately publish his findings, and his work went largely unrecognized for several years. He continued to use ether in his surgical practice and even administered it to his wife during the birth of their second child. Long's pioneering work laid the foundation for the widespread use of anesthesia in surgery, revolutionizing the field and greatly reducing patient suffering. His legacy as a trailblazer in anesthesiology is celebrated to this day.

Crawford Long, ether anesthesia, surgical anesthesia, medical pioneer, anesthesiology, pain management

— Helen James

CITATION : "Helen James. 'Crawford Long.' Design+Encyclopedia. https://design-encyclopedia.com/?E=435430 (Accessed on October 10, 2024)"