Japanese Anesthetics and Experiments in The Doctor's Wife
2009; Elsevier BV; Volume: 122; Issue: 12 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1016/j.amjmed.2009.03.039
ISSN1555-7162
Autores Tópico(s)Medical History and Innovations
ResumoTsusensan is the Japanese word for an oral anesthetic made from herbs that was developed by the famous Japanese surgeon Seishu Hanaoka (1760-1835). Seishu studied the work of the legendary Chinese doctor Houa T'o (died 208). His discovery of the first Chinese anesthetic inspired Seishu to develop his own mixture of Chinese and Japanese herbs, which he would boil in water and alcohol and administer to his surgical patients. Seishu succeeded in discovering an anesthetic some 40 years before Western surgeons began to operate on patients who had been anesthetized through oral inhalation of nitrous oxide, carbon dioxide, ether, and chloroform. 1 Nakayama D.K. Seishu Hanaoka, surgery, and anesthesia in feudal Japan. Pharos Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Med Soc. 2009; Winter: 35-40 Google Scholar Several medical researchers have written about Seishu Hanaoka's pioneering work in medicine. In this article, I will discuss the experimental work of Seishu, as well as a novel by Sawako Ariyoshi titled The Doctor's Wife (1978). 2 Ariyoshi S. Hironaka W. Kostant A.S. The Doctor's Wife. Kodansha, Tokyo, Japan1978 Google Scholar Based on meticulous research, Ariyoshi goes behind the scenes, presenting, through dialogue and description, daily life in Seishu's household, and the actions of the doctor himself, his mother, and his wife. Ariyoshi illuminates family structure during the feudal period of Tokugawa Yoshimune (shogun 1716-1745); the women serve the men whose success glorifies the family name.
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