Halsted, William S

Halsted, William S(tewart)

(b. Sept. 23, 1852, New York, N.Y., U.S.—d. Sept. 7, 1922, Baltimore, Md.) U.S. pioneer of scientific surgery. He graduated from the College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1877. In 1881 he discovered that blood could be aerated and reinfused. He developed conduction anesthesia (1885) by experimenting with injecting his own nerve trunks with cocaine, a substance to which he subsequently became addicted (though later cured). At Johns Hopkins University he established the first surgical school in the U.S. An early champion of aseptic procedures, Halsted introduced the use of thin rubber gloves in surgery (1890). He emphasized homeostasis during surgery, gentleness in handling living tissue, and precise realignment of severed tissues. He originated the practice of hospital surgical residencies.