History of Medicine: Part 7: Germ Theory

Louis Pasteur

In 1860, Louis Pasteur disproved spontaneous generation and that micro-organisms always came forth from other micro-organisms. 

Disproved Spontaneous generation. We can do experiment. 1859.

Applied his findings to make milk safe to drink and to weaken virus' and creating vaccines for anthrax and cholera. 

Joseph Lister

Listeria & Listerine

Read Pasteur's work and applied it to general medicine.

Carbolic acid had been used to weed fields with no harm to the livestock

While teaching and practicing at the university of Edinburgh,  in 1865 a 7 year old broke his leg when he horse and cart ran over it.

Lister dipped fabric in carbolic acid and bandaged it. The results were astounding. All it took was six weeks and the whole thing was healed without puss.

From then on his promoted sterile work environments, cleaning instruments and washing hands. 

Later in life, Lister got appointed Sergeant Surgeon to the Queen. In 1902, her son came down with appendicitis 2 days from his coronation. The surgeon in charge was under a lot of pressure so he consulted Lister. At 74, Lister gave him advise and the surgery was a success. The new King thanked him Lister and said, "I know that if it had not been for you and your work, I wouldn't be sitting here today."

Robert Koch - 1884

https://youtu.be/hKKzUcqZgMY

Robert Koch was a German doctor who was trying to figure put what caused diseases.

Robert Koch is known for developing four basic criteria for demonstrating, in a scientifically sound manner, that a disease is caused by a particular organism. 

1. The microorganism must be found in abundance in all organisms suffering from the disease, but should not be found in healthy organisms. (If the person if suffering from a disease you should be able to find the blamed organism everywhere.)
2. The microorganism must be isolated from a diseased organism and grown in pure culture. (Must be able to identify the micro-organism.)
3. The cultured microorganism should cause disease when introduced into a healthy organism. - (Given to a lab rat, should make them sick.)
4. 
   

1. The microorganism must be re-isolated from the inoculated, diseased experimental host and identified as being identical to the original specific causative agent. (Should be found in the lab rat and identical to the one found in humans.)

Can you think of reasons why any of these might not be true? 

3.) Some creatures or people have immunity and can beat a virus before it takes over.

4.) Virus's can mutate. 

However, by following this scientific process he identified the microbes that causes anthrax, tuberculosis and cholera.

Many, many people refused to accept this. They didn't believe that creatures so small, smaller than dust could kill a grown human man. In reality these tiny germs multiply in the body and can have major effects on your health, especially the poorly nutrient and unwashed people of the 1800's.

He was brilliant but thought that he could be scientific hero. In 1882, he created his own cure to tuberculosis but wouldn't tell anyone what was in it. When it was discovered that the cure wasn't effective people demanded to know what was in it. Robert revealed it he fled the country.

Over the years, many scientists have worked together to create an effective and safe vaccine. In 1921, 39 years after Robert Koch's sole fame seeking attempt. 

Germ Theory is still called a theory today. Many scientific conclusions are called theories and not facts. There can always be something further we don't know.

"A scientific theory is different from a scientific law. Scientific laws are summaries or statements that describe a wide range of observations and results of experiments. Scientific theories, on the other hand, are explanations for observations and results. So, laws describe what happens and theories explain why things happen."

https://youtu.be/N9LC-3ZKiok

In 1881, USA, When, then president Garfield was shot by Charles Guiteau, a man scorned for not being given a job at the white house, Lister's discovery was not yet widely accepted.

There on the dirty train platform doctors used unsanitary tools and their dirty fingers in an attempt to remove the bullets. They got one out but the other remained.

They took him away. Doctor Doctor  Willard Bliss was the presidents doctor.

Without X-rays back then he invited Alexander Graham Bell (inventor of the telephone) to bring with him the first metal detector. Doctor Doctor insisted the bullet was on the right and wouldn't let Bell check the left where the bullet had passed to.

Dr Bliss ignored the latest discoveries and instead held to his own personal beliefs.

The wounds were not fatal but the infections that developed killed him 10 weeks later.

In his trial Guiteau said, "the doctors killed thr president, I only shot the bullet. "

While being led to his execution, Guiteau was said to have continued to smile and wave at spectators and reporters. He notoriously danced his way to the gallows and shook hands with his executioner. On the scaffold, as a last request, he recited a poem called "I am Going to the Lordy", which he had written during his incarceration. He had originally requested an orchestra to play as he sang his poem, but this request was denied.