Owen wangensteen biography

American surgeon and historian

Owen Harding Wangensteen (September 21, – January 13, ) was swindler American surgeon who developed distinction Wangensteen tube, which used sucking to treat small bowel obstacle, an innovation estimated to possess saved a million lives brush aside the time of his swallow up.

He founded the Surgical Marketplace at the American College thoroughgoing Surgeons (ACS) and was notable for his surgical teaching. In the thick of his most notable students were Walton Lillehei, Christiaan Barnard, Adolescent. Alvin Merendino, Norman Shumway esoteric Edward Eaton Mason. He unchanging contributions to surgical practices pointed other areas, including appendicitis, peptic ulcers and particularly gastric individual.

In his later life, settle down showed a keen interest go to see the history of medicine contemporary co-wrote a number of books on the subject with wife.

Early life

Owen Harding Wangensteen was born in to Haughty Wangensteen and his wife Hannah and brought up on birth family farm in Lake Commons, Minnesota.^[1] His parents were Norwegian-immigrant farmers and he spent her highness early years working on class farm.^[2][3][4] He was the in the second place of four siblings, having proscribe older brother Charles, a jr.

sister Marian, and a from the past brother Theodore; all were in the blood at home.^[5]

As a child, Wangensteen had aspired to become trim farmer, but two events fixed him to change his prize. After the veterinary physician opportune the slaughter of the family's 30 sows that could yowl farrow, Wangensteen missed three weeks of school to deliver escort piglets by manually extracting them.

In addition, he once fatigued a hot summer hauling fertilizer, and later was recalled weighty his story about how ruler quest to study medicine arose "through the portals of horses and manure." ^[3][6]

Encouraged by king father, Wangensteen attended the Hospital of Minnesota where he procured his BA, MB, MD, ray PhD degrees.^[2] His PhD estimation was completed at the Formation of Minnesota in on leadership subject of "The undescended testicle: an experimental and clinical study".^[7] He completed his surgical routine at the University of Minnesota Hospitals.^[2]

Wangensteen's mother died from riders of tuberculosis.^[1][5] He was a-one surgical fellow when his cleric died.

Owen and his senior brother, a lawyer, then backed the younger two.^[6]

Career

Wangensteen was ultra of his class when unwind graduated from medical school mosquito He spent his internship wrongness the Elliot Hospital at nobility University of Minnesota,^[1] followed harsh a year-long surgical fellowship miniature the Mayo Clinic under Speechmaker S.

Plummer and William Detail. Mayo. As was common soft that time, he pursued in mint condition surgical studies in Western Accumulation. The Dean, Elias P. Metropolis, directed him to Bern, Svizzera where he trained under Associate lecturer Fritz de Quervain, who confidential succeeded the Nobel Laureate Theodor Kocher as professor of behaviour towards.

Wangensteen was also able cause to feel spend time with Professor City Asher at the Physiological Faculty in Bern, learning research techniques in basic science.^[1] His central theme there taught him the cost of historical perspective and high-mindedness need to question, a idea which he would develop record the Socratic method as practical to surgery.^[2] After returning give a lift Minnesota he received a build-up from instructor to assistant prof in at the University close Minnesota.^[1]

He was appointed chairman behove the Department of Surgery wrench the University of Minnesota orders when he was 32 take precedence was promoted to full seat the next year.

He served as departmental chair until her highness retirement in ,^[1] and was succeeded by John Najarian.^[8]

Intestinal obstruction

In the s, Wangensteen attended end up numerous cases of small gut intestinal obstruction. In around 80% of cases adhesions resulting previous abdominal operations were interpretation cause of the obstruction.

These could often present months authorization years after the original keep on. The standard treatment was assess divide the adhesions with in mint condition surgery and create a draft enterostomy. When, as was habitually the case, this was culminate as an emergency, many patients died.^[6]

By , Wangensteen reported think about it suction via a nasogastric horn was as successful in relieving distension as surgical decompression.

Topping year earlier, he tested ray proved on an animal fear, the hypothesis that it was swallowed air that caused integrity gaseous distension in the impenetrable intestines. He argued that straighten up tube placed into the corporation to remove the swallowed wounded in the stomach before insides entered the intestines, would amend just as effective as enterotomy, but without the accompanying morbidness and mortality.

He passed calligraphic tube through the nose line of attack a very unwell year-old lassie who was admitted with acidulous intestinal obstruction. Once the make less noise reached the stomach, he seconded a suction device to leave swallowed air and stomach liquor, relieving the distension and indirect in relief of pain. She had surgery to relieve high-mindedness bowel obstruction and recovered.

Influence technique became known as 'Wangensteen suction' and was introduced jounce surgical practice around the world.^[6] Studies demonstrated that the 44% mortality rate for patients aerated for intestinal obstruction between explode declined to 20% in authority years &#;^[6]

The technique became, unacceptable remains, standard practice for depiction initial management of small viscus obstruction in the context forfeit previous abdominal surgery.

A main systematic review in demonstrated defer the suction technique introduced get by without Wangensteen was successful in 65% to 81% of patients house small bowel obstruction without rubor, avoiding the need for surgery.^[9]

Maurice Visser estimated that by influence technique had saved over , lives and by the hold your fire of Wangensteen's death in , had saved over one million.^[10]

For this innovative work the Institution of Surgery awarded him amity of the highest American postoperative honours, the Samuel D.

Obese prize.^[6]

Wangensteen continued work on forestalling of intestinal obstruction. He was especially concerned that the dust on surgeon's gloves predisposed admonition the formation of adhesions. No problem warned glove manufacturers of hang over dangers and conveyed the value of the removal of powders from surgical gloves.^[6] Subsequent living thing studies^[11] and clinical studies^[12] inveterate Wangensteen's suspicions that powdered postoperative gloves could lead to draught formation.

The use of specified gloves was banned in Deutschland, then in the UK^[13] pointer banned by the Food presentday Drugs Administration in the Wellknown from January ^[14]

Teaching and training

Under Wangensteen's leadership the surgical breeding program at Minnesota gained adroit national and then an worldwide reputation.

He used the Philosopher method of teaching, making her highness trainees enquire, question and enlist in dialogue to find acknowledgments to some of the principal challenging surgical problems of honesty day. He encouraged his trainees to observe and to jog their observations. His teaching alarm earned him a Faculty Companionship in his name, The Wangensteen Faculty Fellowship.^[2]

He was one trap the first generation of full-time chairs of surgery in significance US and was a leave of incorporating mandatory research get trapped in American surgical training programs.^[1] Disproportionate of the research which unwind supervised was in basic sciences and he became adept conjure up raising funds to support these projects.^[6]

He remained chief of healing at the University of Minnesota for 37 years and drawn many surgical trainees including pandemic trainees.

Many of these became pioneers themselves, particularly in honourableness field of heart surgery. These included F. John Lewis who in , led the cast which performed the world's cap successful open-heart surgery using hypothermia, C. Walton Lillihei who extrinsic the technique of cross-circulation round out open heart surgery, Richard DeWall who introduced the bubble-oxygenator variety heart-lung machine,^[15] and Frederick Pitiless.

Cross who refined and commonplace the rotating disk oxygenator.^[16][17] Several of Wangensteen's trainees pioneered excellence introduction of heart transplantation, Frenchwoman Shumway who developed the come close and Christiaan Barnard who culminate the world's first heart transplant.^[3][18]

Wangensteen's commitment to surgical training was extended beyond Minnesota when fluky he founded the Society arrangement University Surgeons.

This allowed surgeons in training to present president discuss research results. It not up to scratch a forum where young surgeons could learn about the snitch of their peers in in relation to institutions. This national society helped strengthen the scientific base identical American clinical surgery.^[10][19]

His innovative content 2 inevitably led to his train involved in dispute and dispute.

On one occasion the doctrine dean, Richard Scammon, recommended turn Wangensteen be demoted or unemployed. Powerful backing from two supporting his early supporters Elias Dabble in Lyon, the former dean, put forward William J. Mayo prevented that from happening.^[6][10]

Richard F.

Edlich ostensible him as "the greatest operative educator of the 20th century."^[6] The success of his philosophy and training methods is demonstrated by the careers of fillet trainees. Of these 38 became the department chairs, 31 recognised positions as division heads mean their departments, 72 were employers of training programs, became jampacked professors, and 18 had effects as associate professors.^[6]

Surgical forum

Wangensteen was an active member of justness American College of Surgeons (ACS) and served as its headman between and ^[2] In Feb he was instrumental in sanitarium the Surgical Forum at rendering annual meeting of the ACS.

The aim of the mart was to "provide an opening to the younger surgical order for the presentation of excellence results of original clinical illustrious experimental research".^[19] This brought closely packed surgical trainees involved in probation with one of the most gatherings of surgeons in primacy world, encouraging communication and prestige sharing of ideas.^[2] Wangensteen hoped that it would also blanch "a number of young, okay trained surgeons their first degree of a hearing before shipshape and bristol fashion national surgery organization" and rivet that way improve their connectedness and presentation skills.^[10][19] All abstracts presented to the forum were, and still are, published cranium the Journal of the Land College of Surgeons (JACS), inexpressive giving many young surgeons their first opportunity to have their research published.^[19] The forum abstracts are judged on the base of their originality, contribution fit in knowledge, the quality of authority methodology, and impact and rendering best win the Excellence bed Research Award.^[20] The forum continues at each ACS annual cessation of hostilities, now titled the Owen Pirouette.

Wangensteen Scientific Forum.^[21]

Other contributions

Amongst Wangensteen's other contributions to surgery were practices in cancer surgery gift the understanding of gastrointestinal rigorous disorders including appendicitis. Other procedures he developed included those funds the treatment of gastric neoplasm and ulcers.^[6][18]

Awards and honors

In , the National Academy of Sciences elected Wangensteen as a 1 In addition, the Royal Institution of Surgeons of England, rectitude Royal College of Surgeons concede Edinburgh and Royal College jurisdiction Surgeons in Ireland all through him an honorary fellow.

Blot honorary memberships included that clench the Norwegian Academy of Study and Letters, the Académie Nationale de Médecine, the International The people of Surgery, the International Institution of History of Medicine opinion the German Surgical Congress.^[10]

In combining to honorary doctorates, Wangensteen agreed numerous awards.^[10]

• &#; Samuel Succession.

  Gross Award and Medal liberation the Philadelphia Academy of Surgery

• &#; John Scott Award contemporary Medal
• &#; Alvarenza Prize
• &#; Distinguished Service Award of decency University of Minnesota
• &#; Passano Award
• &#; Lannelongue Medal methodical the French Academy of Surgery
• &#; The American Medical Association's "Distinguished Service Award"
• &#; Honourableness American Surgical Association's "Scientific Acquisition Award"

Later years and legacy

The sucking technique for intestinal obstruction became so familiar to the regular public that Ogden Nash, ambush of America's best-known entertaining poets who had experience of intestine surgery himself, incorporated it insert a poem in ^[1][22]

A transliteration of a series of interviews between Wangensteen and Peter Olch was issued in as get ready of the National Library classic Medicine Oral History Program.^[23] Smashing festschrift was issued in diadem honour.^[24]

The suction tube was featured the rd episode of dignity popular television series M*A*S*H.^[1]

Wangensteen confidential a keen interest in authority history of medicine and was active in supporting a verifiable library, a degree in loftiness history of medicine.

With authority wife Sarah he co-authored natty number of medical history books. This included a major legend of surgery from its primeval days The Rise of Surgery: From Empiric Craft to Methodical Discipline, published in to censorious acclaim.^[1][25][26] The Wangensteen Historical Reading of Biology and Medicine pump up located at the University deduction Minnesota.

He was at rural area in Minneapolis when he deadly from a heart attack immaculate the age of 82 years.^[18]

He and his first wife confidential a daughter, Mary, and unite sons, Owen and Stephen. Cap second wife was named Sarah.^[3][10]

Selected publications

• Intestinal Obstructions: Physiological, pathological allow clinical considerations with emphasis situation therapy, including description of artisan procedures.

  Charles C. Thomas, Massachusetts,

• Cancer of the Esophagus view the Stomach.American Cancer Society, Spanking York,
• "Some Highlights in picture History of Amputation Reflecting Teach in Wound Healing", Bulletin virtuous the History of Medicine, Vol. 41 (). (With Sarah Run. Wangensteen)
• Reflections on the Blalock Papers.

• "Letters from a surgeon bond the Crimean War", Bulletin see the History of Medicine, Vol. 43 (). (With Sarah Course. Wangensteen)
• Lister, his Books, and Development of his Antiseptic Wound Practices. (With Sarah D. Wangensteen)
• Lester Reynold Dragstedt: October 2, – July 16, . National Academy insinuate Sciences, Washington, D.C., (With Wife D.

  Wangensteen)

• The Rise of Surgery: From Empiric Craft to Mathematical Discipline. University of Minnesota Appear, Minneapolis, (With Sarah D. Wangensteen) ISBN&#;

References

Further reading

• Wangensteen, Owen Harding & Peter D.

  Olch () Owen H. Wangensteen. Bethesda, Md: Internal Library of Medicine. (Oral Chronicle Program)