Ambroise Paré
Encyclopedia
Ambroise Paré was a French surgeon
. He was the great official royal surgeon for kings Henry II
, Francis II
, Charles IX
and Henry III
and is considered as one of the fathers of surgery and modern forensic pathology. He was a leader in surgical techniques and battlefield medicine
, especially the treatment of wounds. He was also an anatomist and invented several surgical instruments.
" Je le pansai, Dieu le guérit "
("I bandaged him and God healed him") is a quote that summarizes his work philosophy..
Paré also introduced the ligature
of arteries instead of cauterization
during amputation
. To do this he designed the "Bec de Corbin" ("crow's beak"), a predecessor to modern haemostats. Although ligatures often spread infection, it still was an important breakthrough in surgical practice. During his work with injured soldiers, Paré documented the pain experienced by amputees which they perceive as sensation in the amputated limb. He believed that phantom pain
s occurred in the brain and are not the remnants of the limb, which is still the consensus of the medical community today.
Paré was also an important figure in the progress of obstetrics
in the middle of the 16th century. He revived the practice of podalic version
, and showed how even in cases of head presentation, surgeons with this operation could often deliver the infant safely, instead of having to dismember the infant and extract the infant piecemeal.
Paré also introduced the lancing of infants' gums using a lancet during teething
, in the belief that teeth were failing to emerge from the gums due to lack of a pathway, and that this failure was a cause of death. This belief and practice persisted for centuries, with some exceptions, until towards the end of the nineteenth century lancing became increasingly controversial and was then abandoned.
Paré was ably seconded by his pupil Jacques Guillemeau
, who translated his work into Latin
, and at a later period himself wrote a treatise on midwifery
. An English translation of it was published in 1612 with the title Chylde Birth; or, The Happy Deliverie of Women.
In 1552, Paré was accepted into royal service of the Valois Dynasty
under Henry II
; he was however unable to cure the king's fatal blow to the head, which he received during a tournament in 1559. Paré stayed in the service of the Kings of France to the end of his life in 1590, serving Henry II, Francis II, Charles IX, and Henry III.
According to Henri IV's Prime Minister, Sully, Paré was a Huguenot
and on 24 August 1572, the day of the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre
, Paré's life was saved when King Charles IX locked him in a clothes closet. He died in Paris in 1590 from natural causes. While there is evidence that Paré may have been sympathetic to the Huguenot cause, he was twice married, was buried, and had his children baptized into the Catholic faith.
A collection of Paré's works (he published these separately throughout his life, based on his experiences treating soldiers on the battlefield) was published at Paris in 1575. They were frequently reprinted, several editions appeared in German and Dutch, and among the English translations was that of (1665).
. At the time, the bezoar stone was commonly believed to be able to cure the effects of any poison, but Paré believed this to be impossible. It happened that a cook at Paré's court was caught stealing fine silver cutlery, and was condemned to be hanged. The cook agreed to be poisoned, on the conditions that he would be given some bezoar straight after the poison and go free in case he survived. The stone did not cure him, and he died in agony seven hours after being poisoned. Thus Paré had proved that the bezoar stone could not cure all poisons.
, silver
, porcelain
and glass
.
Surgery
Surgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
. He was the great official royal surgeon for kings Henry II
Henry II of France
Henry II was King of France from 31 March 1547 until his death in 1559.-Early years:Henry was born in the royal Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, near Paris, the son of Francis I and Claude, Duchess of Brittany .His father was captured at the Battle of Pavia in 1525 by his sworn enemy,...
, Francis II
Francis II of France
Francis II was aged 15 when he succeeded to the throne of France after the accidental death of his father, King Henry II, in 1559. He reigned for 18 months before he died in December 1560...
, Charles IX
Charles IX of France
Charles IX was King of France, ruling from 1560 until his death. His reign was dominated by the Wars of Religion. He is best known as king at the time of the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre.-Childhood:...
and Henry III
Henry III of France
Henry III was King of France from 1574 to 1589. As Henry of Valois, he was the first elected monarch of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth with the dual titles of King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1573 to 1575.-Childhood:Henry was born at the Royal Château de Fontainebleau,...
and is considered as one of the fathers of surgery and modern forensic pathology. He was a leader in surgical techniques and battlefield medicine
Battlefield medicine
Battlefield medicine, also called field surgery and later combat casualty care, is the treatment of wounded soldiers in or near an area of combat. Civilian medicine has been greatly advanced by procedures that were first developed to treat the wounds inflicted during combat...
, especially the treatment of wounds. He was also an anatomist and invented several surgical instruments.
" Je le pansai, Dieu le guérit "
("I bandaged him and God healed him") is a quote that summarizes his work philosophy..
Medicine
Ambroise Paré used a solution of egg yolks, oil of roses, and turpentine for war wounds instead of boiling elderberry oil and cauterization. He ran out of boiling oil while treating some patients, and used an old method that the Romans had discovered 1000 years before him. He treated the rest of the patients with the ointment of egg yolk, oil of roses and turpentine and left them overnight. When Paré returned the following morning he discovered that the soldiers treated with the boiling oil were in agony, whereas the ones treated with the ointment had recovered because of the antiseptic properties of turpentine. This proved his methods effective. However, they were not widely used until many years later. He published his first book 'The method of curing wounds caused by arquebus and firearms' in 1545.Paré also introduced the ligature
Ligature (medicine)
In surgery or medical procedure, a ligature consists of a piece of thread tied around an anatomical structure, usually a blood vessel or another hollow structure to shut it off. With a blood vessel the surgeon will clamp the vessel perpendicular to the axis of the artery or vein with a hemostat,...
of arteries instead of cauterization
Cauterization
The medical practice or technique of cauterization is the burning of part of a body to remove or close off a part of it in a process called cautery, which destroys some tissue, in an attempt to mitigate damage, remove an undesired growth, or minimize other potential medical harmful possibilities...
during amputation
Amputation
Amputation is the removal of a body extremity by trauma, prolonged constriction, or surgery. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as malignancy or gangrene. In some cases, it is carried out on individuals as a preventative surgery for...
. To do this he designed the "Bec de Corbin" ("crow's beak"), a predecessor to modern haemostats. Although ligatures often spread infection, it still was an important breakthrough in surgical practice. During his work with injured soldiers, Paré documented the pain experienced by amputees which they perceive as sensation in the amputated limb. He believed that phantom pain
Phantom pain
Phantom pain sensations are described as perceptions that an individual experiences relating to a limb or an organ that is not physically part of the body. Limb loss is a result of either removal by amputation or congenital limb deficiency . However, phantom limb sensations can also occur following...
s occurred in the brain and are not the remnants of the limb, which is still the consensus of the medical community today.
Paré was also an important figure in the progress of obstetrics
Obstetrics
Obstetrics is the medical specialty dealing with the care of all women's reproductive tracts and their children during pregnancy , childbirth and the postnatal period...
in the middle of the 16th century. He revived the practice of podalic version
Podalic version
Podalic version is an obstetric procedure wherein the fetus is turned within the womb such that one or both feet present through the cervix during childbirth. It is used most often in cases where the fetus lies transversely or in another abnormal position in the womb...
, and showed how even in cases of head presentation, surgeons with this operation could often deliver the infant safely, instead of having to dismember the infant and extract the infant piecemeal.
Paré also introduced the lancing of infants' gums using a lancet during teething
Teething
Teething is the process by which an infant's first teeth sequentially appear by emerging through the gums. Teething may start as early as three months or as late, in some cases, as twelve months. The typical time frame for the first teeth to appear is somewhere between six and nine months...
, in the belief that teeth were failing to emerge from the gums due to lack of a pathway, and that this failure was a cause of death. This belief and practice persisted for centuries, with some exceptions, until towards the end of the nineteenth century lancing became increasingly controversial and was then abandoned.
Paré was ably seconded by his pupil Jacques Guillemeau
Jacques Guillemeau
Jacques Guillemeau was a French surgeon from Orléans. He is credited for making pioneer contributions in the fields of obstetrics and ophthalmology....
, who translated his work into Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
, and at a later period himself wrote a treatise on midwifery
Midwifery
Midwifery is a health care profession in which providers offer care to childbearing women during pregnancy, labour and birth, and during the postpartum period. They also help care for the newborn and assist the mother with breastfeeding....
. An English translation of it was published in 1612 with the title Chylde Birth; or, The Happy Deliverie of Women.
In 1552, Paré was accepted into royal service of the Valois Dynasty
Valois Dynasty
The House of Valois was a cadet branch of the Capetian dynasty, succeeding the House of Capet as kings of France from 1328 to 1589...
under Henry II
Henry II of France
Henry II was King of France from 31 March 1547 until his death in 1559.-Early years:Henry was born in the royal Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, near Paris, the son of Francis I and Claude, Duchess of Brittany .His father was captured at the Battle of Pavia in 1525 by his sworn enemy,...
; he was however unable to cure the king's fatal blow to the head, which he received during a tournament in 1559. Paré stayed in the service of the Kings of France to the end of his life in 1590, serving Henry II, Francis II, Charles IX, and Henry III.
According to Henri IV's Prime Minister, Sully, Paré was a Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
and on 24 August 1572, the day of the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre
St. Bartholomew's Day massacre
The St. Bartholomew's Day massacre in 1572 was a targeted group of assassinations, followed by a wave of Roman Catholic mob violence, both directed against the Huguenots , during the French Wars of Religion...
, Paré's life was saved when King Charles IX locked him in a clothes closet. He died in Paris in 1590 from natural causes. While there is evidence that Paré may have been sympathetic to the Huguenot cause, he was twice married, was buried, and had his children baptized into the Catholic faith.
A collection of Paré's works (he published these separately throughout his life, based on his experiences treating soldiers on the battlefield) was published at Paris in 1575. They were frequently reprinted, several editions appeared in German and Dutch, and among the English translations was that of (1665).
Bezoar Stone experiment
In 1567, Ambroise Paré described an experiment to test the properties of the Bezoar StoneBezoar
A bezoar is a mass found trapped in the gastrointestinal system , though it can occur in other locations. A pseudobezoar is an indigestible object introduced intentionally into the digestive system....
. At the time, the bezoar stone was commonly believed to be able to cure the effects of any poison, but Paré believed this to be impossible. It happened that a cook at Paré's court was caught stealing fine silver cutlery, and was condemned to be hanged. The cook agreed to be poisoned, on the conditions that he would be given some bezoar straight after the poison and go free in case he survived. The stone did not cure him, and he died in agony seven hours after being poisoned. Thus Paré had proved that the bezoar stone could not cure all poisons.
Forensics
Paré's writings further include the results of his methodical studies on the effects of violent death on internal organs. He also created and wrote, Reports in Court, a procedure on the writing of legal reports in relation to medicine. His writings and instructions are known to be the beginning of modern forensic pathology.Prostheses
Ambroise Paré contributed both to the practice of surgical amputation and to the design of limb prostheses. He also invented some ocular prostheses, making artificial eyes from enameled goldGold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
, silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
, porcelain
Porcelain
Porcelain is a ceramic material made by heating raw materials, generally including clay in the form of kaolin, in a kiln to temperatures between and...
and glass
Glass
Glass is an amorphous solid material. Glasses are typically brittle and optically transparent.The most familiar type of glass, used for centuries in windows and drinking vessels, is soda-lime glass, composed of about 75% silica plus Na2O, CaO, and several minor additives...
.
See also
- ligatureLigature (medicine)In surgery or medical procedure, a ligature consists of a piece of thread tied around an anatomical structure, usually a blood vessel or another hollow structure to shut it off. With a blood vessel the surgeon will clamp the vessel perpendicular to the axis of the artery or vein with a hemostat,...
- Statue of Ambroise Paré, Place du Jet d'eau in Laval, France