Liston, Robert

Born in the village. Ecclesmachine, West Lothian in Scotland in the family of a priest and inventor. His grandfather was the chief presbyter of the Church of Scotland (1787-1796).

He studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh and London . Since 1817 he settled in London, where he lectured on anatomy and surgery.

In 1818 he became a surgeon in the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh .

Then he was a professor at the University of Edinburgh , and in 1834 he returned to London, where in 1835 he became the first professor of clinical medicine at the University College London hospital. There, on December 21, 1846, he performed the first operation in Europe under modern anesthesia using ether .

He was published in the journal Lancet, and published his Principes de chirurgie (1833), which were very successful.

In 1837, he published his Practical Surgeries, in which he raised the question of the importance of rapid surgery. He became famous as an outstanding specialist in operations to remove stones from the bladder .

Liston was known for his ability to perform surgical operations in an era preceding the widespread use of anesthesia , when the speed of operations was of great importance to increase the patient's chances of survival in pain shock. Specialists called Liston “the fastest scalpel in the West End. He could amputate his leg in 2 - 2.5 minutes. "

Invented Liston splint for hip support, which is still used today, as well as forceps clamps for arteries in case of blood loss. Liston was also the first to use several new amputation techniques.

• Robert Liston
• Robert Liston
• Liston, Robert // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.