The Evolution Of Plastic Surgery Techniques: A Window Into Medicine And Culture
Article Source: HealthSnare.com
The Evolution of Plastic Surgery Techniques offers a window into both medicine and culture. Surveying the specifics reveals the practice has a long, fascinating history and shows that the development of techniques has a global legacy.
Before surveying the story, it is important to note that the plastic reference here is not a reference to the synthetic polymer material many associate with the term. Rather, in this case, "plastic" comes from the Greek word plastikos, which means to mold or shape.
Another intriguing thing to think when probing the origins of the term is that many tend to associate it with the polymer plastic, a more recent technological development. This kind of medical procedure, however, has a long and rich background.
Historical records show that the ancient Egyptians developed techniques to repair fractures and maxillofacial injury (facial trauma). In addition, in India, the surgeon Sushruta made contributions. His texts provide case studies of his reconstructions, including grafting an earlobe with skin from the cheek.
There are also documents that show the Greeks and Romans knew techniques and performed simple operations. While it is hard to say how much was innovative and whether they benefited from Egypt and Indian practices, but some believe that Indian techniques were known to them. Many Greeks traveled to Egypt and brought back a knowledge of their ideas, so it is possible
Over time, we can identify many ebbs and flows to this kind of work. While continued in the Middle Ages, innovation was less evident. Renaissance revived medical work in general, and advancements in hygiene allowed for safer procedures. One noteworthy event was the 1597 publication of a systematic text on the field in 1597, De Curtorum Chirurgia Per Institionem by Gaspare Tagliacozzi (1547-1599), which described operatives and included a number of case studies of reconstructions.
A major step forward came through the development of anesthesia in the nineteenth century. With an anesthetic, all sensation is lost and thus the burden of pain is not a major obstacle. When pharmacological products were discovered to alleviate the feeling in the area of where work was being done, people became more open to surgical procedures.
Oddly, the word anesthesia sounds like the word aesthetics, and with the entry of the means to deal with the psychological stress of this kind of work, more and more people who simply want to change how they look have found their way to practitioner's offices. This is unsurprising. It is hard to imagine that someone would want to undergo this kind of operation to simply change the shape of their nose or to remove facial wrinkles with a means to alleviate and sedate the pain.
Since the twentieth century, has become more popular. Indeed, people of all ages now turn to specialists from both medical and aesthetic operations. Thus, looking at the history as a whole we more firmly see that the Evolution of Plastic Surgery Techniques is multifaceted. While the contemporary cultural imagination often equates the surgery with aesthetics, its long history shows that it is a tool in reconstruction that often helps people, (e. G., burn victims).
About the Author
Article Submitted By:
Adrianna Noton
Html View
Total views: 11
Word Count: 559
Date: Mon, 28 Jun 2010 Time: 2:55 AM
Publish/Share this article
To use this article on your site click here to get the HTML code |Remember: The article body, title, author bio and links may not be changed or removed. By publishing this article, you agree to all the terms in our Terms of Service.
Rating: Not yet rated
