John Hunter (February 13, 1728 - October 16, 1793) was a Scottish surgeon regarded as one of the most distinguished scientists and surgeons of his day. He was an early advocate of the application of rigorous scientific experimentation in medicine. Image File history File links John_Hunter. ... Sir Joshua Reynolds in a self-portrait Colonel Acland and Lord Sydney, The Archers, 1769. ... The Royal College of Surgeons of England is an independent professional body committed to promoting and advancing the highest standards of surgical care for patients. ... Charles Byrne (1761-1783) also known as Charles OBrien or The Irish Giant, was a human curiosity or freak in London in the 1780s. ... is the 44th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events Astronomical aberration discovered by the astronomer James Bradley Swedish academy of sciences founded at Uppsala The founding of the University of Havana (Universidad de la Habana), Cubas most well-established university. ... is the 289th day of the year (290th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1793 (MDCCXCIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the 11-day slower Julian calendar). ... This article is about the country. ... “Surgeon” redirects here. ...

Biography

Hunter was born at Long Calderwood near East Kilbride, the youngest of 10 children. Three of these children had died of illness before John Hunter was born. One of these three had been named John Hunter also. An older brother was William Hunter, the anatomist. From 1748, he studied at St. Bartholomew's Hospital under Percival Pott and taught and practiced in London (initially with his brother). Although his brother was the owner of the joint anatomy school, John did most of the delicate knife work under his brother's supervision. East Kilbride (Cille Bhrìghde an Ear in Scottish Gaelic) is a large town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. ... William Hunter (23 May 1718 – 30 March 1783) was a Scottish anatomist and physician. ... Year 1748 (MDCCXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Friday of the 11-day slower Julian calendar). ... The main entrance at Barts, which was built in 1702. ... Percivall Pott (January 6, 1714 - December 22, 1788) - London surgeon. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ...

He was commissioned as an Army surgeon in 1760 and spent three years in France and Portugal. 1760 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ...

Hunter was an excellent anatomist; his knowledge and skill as a surgeon was based on sound anatomical background. Among his numerous contributions to medical science are :

• study of human teeth and advancement of dentistry
• extensive study of inflammation
• fine work on gun-wounds
• some work on venereal diseases, including possibly inoculating himself with venereal disease in 1767 to carry out further study
• an understanding of the nature of digestion, and verifying that fats are absorbed into the lacteals, a type of small intestine lymphatic capillary, and not into the intestinal blood capillaries as was generally accepted.
• The first complete study of the development of a child from fetus to birth
• proves that the maternal and fetal blood supplies are separate
• Unravelling of one of the major anatomical mysteries of the time- the role of the lymphatic system

After years of hard work he set up his own anatomy school in London in 1764 and started in private surgical practice. His recognition rose in 1767 when he was elected as Fellow of the Royal Society and in 1768 he was appointed as surgeon to St. George's Hospital. Later he became a member of the Company of Surgeons. In 1776 he was appointed surgeon to King George III; in 1786 he was appointed deputy surgeon to the British Army and in 1789 he was made Surgeon General. Types of teeth Molars are used for grinding up foods Carnassials are used for slicing food. ... This article is about the dental profession. ... Sexually-transmitted infections (STIs), also known as sexually-transmitted diseases (STDs), are diseases that are commonly transmitted between partners through some form of sexual activity, most commonly vaginal intercourse, oral sex, or anal sex. ... For the industrial process, see anaerobic digestion. ... Human heart and lungs, from an older edition of Grays Anatomy. ... 1764 was a leap year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Year 1767 (MDCCLXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 11-day slower Julian calendar). ... For other uses, see Royal Society (disambiguation). ... 1768 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... St Georges Hospital, founded in 1733, is a teaching hospital in London. ... Royal College of Surgeons of England, Lincolns Inn Fields The Royal College of Surgeons of England is an independent professional body committed to promoting and advancing the highest standards of surgical care for patients, regulating surgery, including dentistry, in England and Wales. ... For other uses, see 1776 (disambiguation). ... George III redirects here. ... 1786 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Year 1789 (MDCCLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 11-day slower Julian calendar). ... Surgeon General can have several different meanings. ...

In 1771 he married Anne Home, daughter of Robert Boyne Home and sister of Sir Everard Home. They had four children, two of whom died before the age of 5 and one of whom, Agnes (their fourth child), married General Sir James Campbell. Sir Everard Home (b. ... James Campbell was, and through his estate continues to be, one of the wealthiest landowners in Hawaii. ...

In 1783 he moved to a large house in Leicester Square, where today there stands a statue to him. The space allowed him to arrange his collection of nearly 14,000 preparations of over 500 species of plants and animals into a teaching museum. 1783 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Leicester Square at night in 2005: a view towards the northeast corner. ...

In 1783 he acquired the skeleton of the 7' 7" Irish giant Charles Byrne against his clear deathbed wishes - he asked to be buried at sea. Hunter bribed a member of the funeral party (possibly for £500) and filled the coffin with rocks at an overnight stop, then subsequently published a scientific description of the anatomy and skeleton which now resides in the Hunterian Museum at the Royal College of Surgeons in London.^[1][2] Charles Byrne (1761-1783) also known as Charles OBrien or The Irish Giant, was a human curiosity or freak in London in the 1780s. ...

He had a reputation as a blunt speaker with an argumentative nature. His death in 1793 followed a fit brought on during an argument at St George's Hospital over the admission of students. Year 1793 (MDCCXCIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the 11-day slower Julian calendar). ...

In 1799 the government purchased Hunter's collection of papers and specimens, which it presented to the Company of Surgeons. 1799 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ...

Helping the poor

Hunter was a philosopher in more senses than one; he had philosophy enough to bear prosperity, as well as adversity, and with a rough exterior was a very kind man. The poor could command his services more than the rich. He would see an industrious tradesman before a duke, when his house was full of grandees, "you have no time to spare," he would say, "you live by it; most of these can wait, they have nothing to do when they go home." No man cared less for the profits of the profession, or more for the honour of it. He cared not for money himself, and wished the Doctor [his brother William] to estimate it by the same scale, when he sent a poor man with this laconic note:-

"Dear Brother,- The bearer wants your advice. I do not know the nature of case. He has no money, and you have plenty, so are well met."

"Yours, J. Hunter."

He was applied to once to perform a serious operation on a tradesman's wife; the fee agreed upon was twenty guineas. He heard no more of the case for two months; at the end of which time he was called upon to perform it. In the course of his attendance, he found out that the cause of the delay had been the difficulty under which the patient's husband had laboured to raise the money; and that they were worthy people, who had been unfortunate, and were by no means able to support the expense of such an affliction. "I sent back to the husband nineteen guineas, and kept the twentieth," said he, "that they might not be hurt with an idea of too great obligation. It somewhat more than paid me for the expense I had been at in the business."

Miscellany

Hunter was the basis for the character "Jack Tearguts" in William Blake's early satire, An Island in the Moon. William Blake (November 28, 1757 – August 12, 1827) was an English poet, visionary, painter, and printmaker. ...

A bust of John Hunter stands on a pedestal outside the main entrance to St George's Hospital in Tooting, South London, along with a lion and unicorn taken from the original Hyde Park Corner building. There is also a bust of him in Leicester Square in London's West End and in the South West corner of Lincoln's Inn Fields. St Georges Hospital, founded in 1733, is a teaching hospital in London, England. ... For the crater on Mars, see Tooting (crater). ... Leicester Square at night in 2005: a view towards the northeast corner. ... Lincolns Inn Fields is the largest public square in London. ...

The John Hunter Hospital, the largest hospital in Newcastle, Australia, and principal teaching hospital of the University of Newcastle, is named after Hunter (as well as two other historically significant John Hunters). The John Hunter Hospital (sometimes known as the JHH or more colloquially the John) is the principal referral centre and a community hospital for Newcastle, Lake Macquarie and Northern New South Wales. ... This article is about the metropolitan area in Australia. ... The University of Newcastle is a public university located in Callaghan, a suburb of Newcastle, New South Wales. ...

John Hunter was known to use colorful language quite often, even in formal situations.

References

1. ^ Doctors: The Biography of Medicine by Sherwin B. Nuland.
2. ^ http://www.teach12.com/store/professor.asp?ID=308 Doctors: The History of Scientific Medicine Revealed Through Biography Sherwin B. Nuland at The Teaching Company.

• Moore, Wendy. The Knife Man (London: Bantam 2005, ISBN 0-593-05209-9)
• Kobler, John, The Reluctant Surgeon. A Biography of John Hunter, Garden City, New York, Doubleday & Company, Inc, 1960.

Sherwin Nuland (born December 1930) is an American surgeon who teaches bioethics and medicine at the Yale University School of Medicine, where he obtained his M.D. degree. ... Sherwin Nuland (born December 1930) is an American surgeon who teaches bioethics and medicine at the Yale University School of Medicine, where he obtained his M.D. degree. ... The Teaching Company is an American company that produces recordings of lectures by nationally top-ranked university professors. ...

External links

• Detailed account of John Hunters life and work at the 1911 Encyclopaedia
• Standing on the bones of Irish giants - John Hunter and Charles Byrne (O'Brien) - from Blather.net
• Medical biography at whonamedit.com
• John Hunter's Treatise on Venereal Disease
• The Hunterian Museum - The Royal College of Surgeons of England, London