Anesthesia


Chloroform, transport

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Vierkantflasche 

 

 

Chloroform was produced in 1831 independently by Justus von Liebig and Eugène Soubeiran. After his narcotic effect had been recognized as early as 1842 by the British physician Robert Mortimer Glover and 1847 by the French physiologist Marie Jean Pierre Flourens and the Scottish obstetrician James Young Simpson, it was the merit of the latter, Chloroform a year later in the medical Introduce practice and spare countless patients surgical pain (text Wikipedia). Chloroform has long been an important anesthetic. The danger emanating from him (damaging to health) was underestimated for many years.

 


Chloroform decomposes on exposure to sunlight and atmospheric oxygen to hydrogen chloride and the extremely toxic phosgene - therefore the storage in brown bottles and is stored in darkness if possible. In addition, some of the liquid is added to the liquid as a stabilizer (1% strength solution), since this eventually eliminates phosgene formed with formation of carbonic and chloroformic acid esters

 


Reading
"Nobody in the fine company of Edinburgh misses the invitation to attend a dinner party with James Young Simpson in 1847. The popular and versatile doctor always entertains his guests with scientific cabinet bits." German chemist Justus Liebig first produced it sixteen years ago: chloroform, the vial goes round and round, and everyone who smells it sinks down on the carpet asleep to the fun of others, so it's no surprise that the gynecologist finally turns to the The idea is to test the miraculous party drug in its delivery room for its effectiveness as an anesthetic.
Simpson then constructed a wire frame covered with fabric. On November 9, 1847, he puts the mask over an expectant mother's mouth and nose for the first time, drizzles it with chloroform and releases the completely anesthetized woman from a healthy child without pain. Despite the resounding success, Simpson has been struggling for years to spread its discovery. Above all, the Anglican church is railing against the supposed disregard of the divine will. In the agony of birth, the clerics see the just punishment for Eve's fall. Six years later Simpson made his breakthrough when Queen Victoria, head of the English state church, gave birth to her eighth child under chloroform general anesthesia. However, it takes decades before the pain-free birth "à la reine" (after Queen's style) not only benefits upperclass ladies but can revolutionize midwifery worldwide "(WDR, broadcast on 09 November 2007 - before 160 Years: first childbirth with chloroform anesthesia).
"Mariánské Lázně, June 9. (Priv.) A health-care guest came to a pharmacy yesterday and ordered a remedy." In an unsupervised moment he drank from a chloroform apothecary bottle and died instantly. "It is the 32-year-old resident of Germany Kaufmann Michael Vlachos "(Innsbruck News, June 9, 1932) ...



Accidents with chloroform were not uncommon (fatal cardiac arrhythmias, liver failure). Nevertheless, in a first phase, the sweet-smelling chloroform displaced aether as anesthetic in many places. It only disappeared from the operating theaters after World War II, when more modern means became available. Already in 1936 we read of Evipan narcosis: "Proven in my dental practice more than 400 anesthetics by a Luxembourg doctor practiced. (Evipan and Aether anesthesia) in dental surgery, tooth extraction, gold seals, Knippstahlgebisse Dentist Syré -Thinnes, Wasserbilligerbrück, Villa to the beautiful view Admitted to all German health insurances 22 years self-employed, 8 years on the bridge, office hours daily until 7 am, Sundays until 4 am "(Luxemburger Wort, 1.3.1936). This Evipan was only in 1932 in the trade!
Progressive remedies in some, conservative anesthetics in others: as late as 1975, the respected Luxembourg doctor Emil GRETSCH (1908-2004) in the Maternité Gr-D. Charlotte "narcoses à la reine" by ...

 


We show here a 19.0 x 8.5 cm square, brown chloroform bottle from the early 20th century, acquired on a street market in Remich / Mosel on 15.8.2012. Significantly rarer than round are such square bottles.

hen 20. Jahrhundert, erworben auf einem Strassenmarkt in Remich/Mosel am 15.8.2012. Deutlich seltener als runde sind solche Vierkantflaschen.