Resumen

FLEITAS SALAZAR, Carlos Rafael. Historical note about the first use of anesthesia in Santiago de Cuba. Rev cuba anestesiol reanim [online]. 2014, vol.13, n.2, pp.206-212. ISSN 1726-6718.

Introduction: the emergence of anesthesia was a transcendental event. Together with hemostasis and antisepsis, anesthesia changed the course of medical history, marking the start of modern surgery. Objective: determine when and by whom anesthesia was first used in Santiago de Cuba. Method: a documentary and bibliographic study was conducted about the date and circumstances of the first anesthetic act in the city of Santiago de Cuba. For this purpose, a review was performed of 19th century documents kept at the Provincial Historical Archive of Santiago de Cuba, as well as the press from the period preserved at Elvira Cape Provincial Library, particularly the newspaper El Redactor. Results: it was found that the first anesthetic act performed in this city occurred in the morning of 29 July 1847. The act was conducted by Dr. José Fernández Celis, a Venezuelan surgeon settled in the city. The anesthetic agent used was ether, which was applied using a device designed by US chemist Charles Jackson. The surgery was the amputation of two knuckles from the right foot. No complications were reported. Conclusions: the event occurred only nine and a half months after Morton's successful demonstration in the United States, and four and a half months after the first use of anesthesia in Cuba, ranking the country among the first ones to use anesthesia in Latin America.

Palabras clave : history of anesthesiology; Cuba.

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