Nikolai Korotkov
Encyclopedia
Nikolai Sergeyevich Korotkov (also romanized
Korotkoff; ) ( – 14 March 1920) was a Russian surgeon
, a pioneer of 20th century vascular surgery
, and the inventor of auscultatory technique for blood pressure measurement
.
on February 26, 1874. He attended the Kursk Gymnasium (secondary school). He entered the medical faculty of Kharkov University in 1893 and transferred to Moscow University in 1895, where he graduated with distinction in 1898. He was appointed resident intern to professor Alexander Bobrov at the surgical clinic of Moscow university.
Korotkov was given leave of absence to serve with the Russian military forces in the Far East
during the Boxer Rebellion
in China
1900. He was attached to the Red Cross in the Iversh Community under Dr Aleksinskii (a pupil of prof. Bobrov). The journey to the Far East entailed extensive travel by way of the Trans-Siberian railroad, through Irkutsk
to Vladivostok
and he returned to Moscow
via Japan
, Singapore
, Ceylon and the Suez Canal
to reach the Black Sea
and Feodosiya. Korotkov was honoured with the Order of St. Anna
for "outstandingly zealous labours in helping the sick and wounded soldiers".
On his return Nikolai Korotkov turned his mind from military to academic pursuits and translated Eduard Albert's
monograph "Die Chirurgische Diagnostik" from German to Russian. In 1903, Dr Sergei Federov was appointed professor of surgery at the Military Medical Academy at St Petersburg, and he invited Korotkov to join him as assistant surgeon. During the Russo-Japanese War
in 1904–1905, Korotkov went to Harbin
in Manchuria
as senior surgeon in charge of the Second St George's Unit of the Red Cross. He became interested in vascular surgery
and began to collect cases for his doctoral thesis, which included 41 of 44 case reports of patients who were part of his war experience in the hospital at Harbin.
Returning to St Petersburg in April 1905 he began to prepare his thesis, but it was a presentation to the Imperial Military Medical Academy in 1905 that earned him lasting fame. The technique of blood pressure measurement
was reported in less than a page (only 281 words) of the "Izvestie Imp. Voiennomedicinskoi Akademii" (Reports of the Imperial Military Medical Academy):
The critical comments of Korotkov's peers were dealt with in an adroit manner, and he appeared a month later at the Imperial Military Academy with animal experiments to support his theory that the sounds he had described were produced locally, rather than in the heart. He earned the approbation of professor M. V. Yanovsky, who declared: "Korotkov has noticed and intelligently utilised a phenomenon which many observers have overlooked." Yanovsky and his pupils verified the accuracy of the technique and described the phases of the auscultatory sounds and for a time technique was known as the Korotkov-Yanovsky method.
Nikolai Korotkov, then serving as research physician to the mining district of Vitimsko-Olekminsky in Siberia
, received his doctorate
in 1910. After that he served as surgeon to the workers of the gold mines of Lensk
. Here he witnessed Tsarist atrocities and was affected deeply by the murder of unarmed striking miners. After this Korotkov returned to St. Petersburg and during the First World War he was surgeon to "The Charitable House for disabled soldiers" in Tsarskoe Selo. He welcomed the October Revolution
after which he was physician-in-chief of the Mechnikov Hospital in Petrograd until his death from lung tuberculosis on March 14, 1920.
Romanization of Russian
Romanization of the Russian alphabet is the process of transliterating the Russian language from the Cyrillic alphabet into the Latin alphabet...
Korotkoff; ) ( – 14 March 1920) was a Russian surgeon
Surgeon
In medicine, a surgeon is a specialist in surgery. Surgery is a broad category of invasive medical treatment that involves the cutting of a body, whether human or animal, for a specific reason such as the removal of diseased tissue or to repair a tear or breakage...
, a pioneer of 20th century vascular surgery
Vascular surgery
Vascular surgery is a specialty of surgery in which diseases of the vascular system, or arteries and veins, are managed by medical therapy, minimally-invasive catheter procedures, and surgical reconstruction. The specialty evolved from general and cardiac surgery...
, and the inventor of auscultatory technique for blood pressure measurement
Blood pressure
Blood pressure is the pressure exerted by circulating blood upon the walls of blood vessels, and is one of the principal vital signs. When used without further specification, "blood pressure" usually refers to the arterial pressure of the systemic circulation. During each heartbeat, BP varies...
.
Associated eponyms
- Korotkoff method is a non-invasive auscultatory technique for determining both systolic and diastolic blood pressureBlood pressureBlood pressure is the pressure exerted by circulating blood upon the walls of blood vessels, and is one of the principal vital signs. When used without further specification, "blood pressure" usually refers to the arterial pressure of the systemic circulation. During each heartbeat, BP varies...
levels. The method requires а sphygmomanometerSphygmomanometerA sphygmomanometer or blood pressure meter is a device used to measure blood pressure, comprising an inflatable cuff to restrict blood flow, and a mercury or mechanical manometer to measure the pressure. It is always used in conjunction with a means to determine at what pressure blood flow is just...
and а stethoscopeStethoscopeThe stethoscope is an acoustic medical device for auscultation, or listening to the internal sounds of an animal body. It is often used to listen to lung and heart sounds. It is also used to listen to intestines and blood flow in arteries and veins...
. Due to ease and accuracy, it is considered a "gold standard" for blood pressure measurementBlood pressureBlood pressure is the pressure exerted by circulating blood upon the walls of blood vessels, and is one of the principal vital signs. When used without further specification, "blood pressure" usually refers to the arterial pressure of the systemic circulation. During each heartbeat, BP varies... - Korotkoff sounds are pulse-synchronous circulatory sounds heard through the stethoscope in auscultation of blood pressure using Riva-Rocci's sphygmomanometer.
- Korotkoff test or Korotkoff sign is a collateral circulation test: in aneurysm, if the blood pressure in the peripheral circulation remains fairly high while the artery above the aneurysm is compressed, the collateral circulation is good.
Biography
Nikolai Korotkov was born to a merchant family at 40 Milenskaia Street in KurskKursk
Kursk is a city and the administrative center of Kursk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Kur, Tuskar, and Seym Rivers. The area around Kursk was site of a turning point in the Russian-German struggle during World War II and the site of the largest tank battle in history...
on February 26, 1874. He attended the Kursk Gymnasium (secondary school). He entered the medical faculty of Kharkov University in 1893 and transferred to Moscow University in 1895, where he graduated with distinction in 1898. He was appointed resident intern to professor Alexander Bobrov at the surgical clinic of Moscow university.
Korotkov was given leave of absence to serve with the Russian military forces in the Far East
Far East
The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...
during the Boxer Rebellion
Boxer Rebellion
The Boxer Rebellion, also called the Boxer Uprising by some historians or the Righteous Harmony Society Movement in northern China, was a proto-nationalist movement by the "Righteous Harmony Society" , or "Righteous Fists of Harmony" or "Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists" , in China between...
in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
1900. He was attached to the Red Cross in the Iversh Community under Dr Aleksinskii (a pupil of prof. Bobrov). The journey to the Far East entailed extensive travel by way of the Trans-Siberian railroad, through Irkutsk
Irkutsk
Irkutsk is a city and the administrative center of Irkutsk Oblast, Russia, one of the largest cities in Siberia. Population: .-History:In 1652, Ivan Pokhabov built a zimovye near the site of Irkutsk for gold trading and for the collection of fur taxes from the Buryats. In 1661, Yakov Pokhabov...
to Vladivostok
Vladivostok
The city is located in the southern extremity of Muravyov-Amursky Peninsula, which is about 30 km long and approximately 12 km wide.The highest point is Mount Kholodilnik, the height of which is 257 m...
and he returned to Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
via Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, Ceylon and the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
to reach the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
and Feodosiya. Korotkov was honoured with the Order of St. Anna
Order of St. Anna
The Order of St. Anna ) is a Holstein and then Russian Imperial order of chivalry established by Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp on 14 February 1735, in honour of his wife Anna Petrovna, daughter of Peter the Great of Russia...
for "outstandingly zealous labours in helping the sick and wounded soldiers".
On his return Nikolai Korotkov turned his mind from military to academic pursuits and translated Eduard Albert's
Eduard Albert
MUDr. Eduard Albert , was a Czech surgeon, professor and historian.- Life :Eduard Albert was born in Žamberk, Bohemia in the family of clockmaker František Albert and Kateřina Albertová...
monograph "Die Chirurgische Diagnostik" from German to Russian. In 1903, Dr Sergei Federov was appointed professor of surgery at the Military Medical Academy at St Petersburg, and he invited Korotkov to join him as assistant surgeon. During the Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
in 1904–1905, Korotkov went to Harbin
Harbin
Harbin ; Manchu language: , Harbin; Russian: Харби́н Kharbin ), is the capital and largest city of Heilongjiang Province in Northeast China, lying on the southern bank of the Songhua River...
in Manchuria
Manchuria
Manchuria is a historical name given to a large geographic region in northeast Asia. Depending on the definition of its extent, Manchuria usually falls entirely within the People's Republic of China, or is sometimes divided between China and Russia. The region is commonly referred to as Northeast...
as senior surgeon in charge of the Second St George's Unit of the Red Cross. He became interested in vascular surgery
Vascular surgery
Vascular surgery is a specialty of surgery in which diseases of the vascular system, or arteries and veins, are managed by medical therapy, minimally-invasive catheter procedures, and surgical reconstruction. The specialty evolved from general and cardiac surgery...
and began to collect cases for his doctoral thesis, which included 41 of 44 case reports of patients who were part of his war experience in the hospital at Harbin.
Returning to St Petersburg in April 1905 he began to prepare his thesis, but it was a presentation to the Imperial Military Medical Academy in 1905 that earned him lasting fame. The technique of blood pressure measurement
Blood pressure
Blood pressure is the pressure exerted by circulating blood upon the walls of blood vessels, and is one of the principal vital signs. When used without further specification, "blood pressure" usually refers to the arterial pressure of the systemic circulation. During each heartbeat, BP varies...
was reported in less than a page (only 281 words) of the "Izvestie Imp. Voiennomedicinskoi Akademii" (Reports of the Imperial Military Medical Academy):
The critical comments of Korotkov's peers were dealt with in an adroit manner, and he appeared a month later at the Imperial Military Academy with animal experiments to support his theory that the sounds he had described were produced locally, rather than in the heart. He earned the approbation of professor M. V. Yanovsky, who declared: "Korotkov has noticed and intelligently utilised a phenomenon which many observers have overlooked." Yanovsky and his pupils verified the accuracy of the technique and described the phases of the auscultatory sounds and for a time technique was known as the Korotkov-Yanovsky method.
Nikolai Korotkov, then serving as research physician to the mining district of Vitimsko-Olekminsky in Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
, received his doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
in 1910. After that he served as surgeon to the workers of the gold mines of Lensk
Lensk
Lensk is a town and the administrative center of Lensky District of the Sakha Republic, Russia, located on the left bank of the Lena River, approximately west of Yakutsk, the capital of the republic. Population: -History:...
. Here he witnessed Tsarist atrocities and was affected deeply by the murder of unarmed striking miners. After this Korotkov returned to St. Petersburg and during the First World War he was surgeon to "The Charitable House for disabled soldiers" in Tsarskoe Selo. He welcomed the October Revolution
October Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
after which he was physician-in-chief of the Mechnikov Hospital in Petrograd until his death from lung tuberculosis on March 14, 1920.