Medical Terminology Daily (MTD) is a blog sponsored by Clinical Anatomy Associates, Inc. as a service to the medical community. We post anatomical, medical or surgical terms, their meaning and usage, as well as biographical notes on anatomists, surgeons, and researchers through the ages. Be warned that some of the images used depict human anatomical specimens.

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A Moment in History

Jean-Louis Petit

Jean Louis Petit
(1674 – 1750)

French surgeon and anatomist, Jean Louis Petit was born in Paris in on March 13, 1674.  His family rented an apartment at his house to Alexis Littre (1658 – 1726), a French anatomist. Petit became an apprentice of Littre at seven years of age, helping him in the dissections for his lectures and at an early age became the assistant in charge of the anatomic amphitheater.

Because of Petit’s dedication to anatomy and medicine, in 1690 at the age of sixteen, became a disciple of a famous Paris surgeon, Castel.

In 1692, Petit entered the French army and performed surgery in two military campaigns. By 1693 he started delivering lectures and was accepted as a great surgeon, being invited to the most difficult operations.  In 1700 he was appointed Chief Surgeon of the Military School in Paris and in the same year he received the degree of Master of Surgery from the Faculty of Paris.

In 1715 he was made a member of the Royal Academy of Sciences and an honorary member of the Royal Society of London. He was appointed by the King as the first Director General of the Royal Academy of Surgery when it was founded in 1731.

Petit’s written works are of historical importance.  “Traite des Maladies des Os” ( A Treatise on Bone Diseases);  “Traite des Maladies Chirurgicales et des Operation” (A Treatise on Surgical Diseases and their Operations” This last book was published posthumously in 1774. He also published a monograph on hemorrhage, another on lachrymal fistula, and others.

He was one of the first to perform choIecystotomy and mastoidotomy. His original tourniquet design for amputations saved many in the battlefield and the design of the same surgical instrument today has not changed much since its invention by him.

His name is remembered in the lumbar triangle, also called the "triangle of Petit", and the abdominal hernia that can ensue through that area of weakness, the lumbar hernia or "Petit's hernia".

Sources:
1. “Jean Louis Petit – A Sketch of his Life, Character, and Writings” Hayne, AP San Fran Western Lancet 1875 4: 446-454
2. “Oeuvres compl?tes de Jean-Louis Petit” 1837 Imprimerie de F. Chapoulaud
3. Extraits de l'eloge de Jean-Louis Petit Ius dans Ia seance publique de I' Academie royale de chirurgie du 26 mai 1750” Louis A. Chirurgie 2001: 126 : 475- 81


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A public anatomy

The terms “anatomy” and “dissection” are synonymous. In the days of Andreas Vesalius, the dissection of a corpse was a public event, where medical students would attend, as well as the paying public.

This event would go on for days as the dissector would explain the anatomy racing against time, as there were no means of body preservation.

Through the centuries after the public anatomies of the 1500’s, the dissection of donated bodies has been continued in the anatomy departments of medical schools helping medical students and surgeons prepare for the challenges of the practice of medicine and surgery.

A public anatomy at the University of St. Louis
A public anatomy was one of the events of the interdisciplinary symposium "Vesalius and the Invention of the Modern Body" hosted by the St. Louis University and the Washington University February 26-28, 2015. To my knowledge, a public anatomy has not been done in centuries (I may be wrong).

Some of the objectives were to demonstrate that Andrea Vesalius' description of the anatomy of the brain, its ventricular system, and the cranial nerves was logical, followed a process, and that  the Fabrica, in its seventh book can be used as a dissector. The presentation was entitled “A Fabrica-guided Neo-Vesalian Public Dissection of the Brain Ventricular System 500 Years Later at St. Louis University” by Dr. Salomon Segal.

The dissection used excerpts and images from the Fabrica, as well as an advanced HD 3D camera, showing the brain and its structures with amazing clarity. The accompanying photo of the event is not well focused because of the light conditions, but shows the setup for the presentation.

This was an extremely professional presentation and although not completely “public” per se, the variety of attendees had a great feedback on the event. Proper attention to the care and respect towards the specimens and the anonymity of the donors was maintained at all times. I consider myself honored to have been a witness and a participant to this extraordinary event. Dr. Miranda

Click here for a compilation of some of the images of the Fabrica and the dissection of the brain

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