Antiseptic Surgery Facts | Facts about Antiseptic Surgeries

Who first showed that handwashing saves lives?

In 1847, Hungarian doctor Ignaz Semmelweis showed that handwashing reduced deaths among new mothers, but many doctors rejected his idea.

British surgeon Joseph Lister pioneered antiseptic surgery in 1867 using carbolic acid.

Listerine mouthwash, created in 1879, is named after Joseph Lister.

Surgeon William Halsted introduced rubber surgical gloves in 1889 to protect his nurse's hands from harsh chemicals. She later became his wife.

Surgeons once wore bloody coats as a badge of experience.

Florence Nightingale used statistics and diagrams to show that poor sanitation was killing soldiers in hospitals.

Global Handwashing Day is October 15.

The "Semmelweis reflex" is the tendency to reject new evidence that goes against established beliefs.

Surgical masks were first used in the late 1890s.

Joseph Lister was the first medical doctor to be made a member of the House of Lords in Britain.