Profiling 60 medical innovations and milestones from the 11th through 21st centuries, this book highlights the people and stories behind these key moments while also exploring their historical context and enduring legacy. Medical Firsts: Innovations and Milestones That Changed the World brings together a carefully curated collection of turning points in the history of medicine over the last millennium. These firsts are drawn from a wide array of medical fields, from surgery to genetics, dentistry, and psychiatry. Firsts are arranged chronologically, but a thematic listing has also been included to allow readers to focus in on particular subject areas, such as trailblazing individuals, groundbreaking drugs and treatments, pioneering diagnostic tools, and life-saving medical procedures. Each entry begins with a description of how the first came to be, followed by discussion of the historical context in which it emerged and its continued impact on the world of medicine. Sources for further information are provided at the end of each entry and serve as a gateway to further study. We take many modern medical devices and techniques for granted, but everything from hypodermic needles and baby incubators to organ transplants, antibiotics, and hearing aids began simply as ideas in someone's mind. And while such concepts as formal medical education, methodical clinical trials, and universal healthcare may seem commonplace today, this wasn't always the case. In some cases, milestones centered around key people and institutions rather than technologies or ideas. Do you know who the first woman to win the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was, or where the oldest medical school still in existence resides? Medical history comes to life in this captivating volume.

Table of Contents:
Chronological List of Firsts Thematic List of Firsts Preface Acknowledgments Introduction Medical Firsts 1. First Medical School Still in Existence, 1088 2. First Successful Cesarean Operation, 1337 3. First Hospital in North America, 1524 4. First Documented Condom Use, 1562 5. First Wheelchair, 1595 6. First American Dentist, 1630 7. First Microbiologist, 1674 8. First Clinical Trial, 1747 9. First Female Doctor with a Full Medical Degree, 1754 10. First Publicly Funded American Psychiatric Hospital, 1773 11. First Vaccine, 1796 12. First Successful Human-to-Human Blood Transfusion, 1829 13. First University-Trained African American Doctor, 1837 14. First Hypodermic Needle, 1844 15. First Use of Anesthesia in Surgery, 1846 16. First International Health Organization, 1851 17. First Epidemiological Study, 1854 18. First Use of Antiseptic Spray, 1865 19. First Successful Brain Tumor Operation, 1879 20. First Baby Incubator, 1880 21. First Steps toward Universal Health Care, 1883 22. First Cancer Immunotherapy Treatment, 1891 23. First Successful Open Heart Surgery, 1893 24. First Breast Augmentation Surgery, 1893 25. First Medical X-ray, 1895 26. First Electric Hearing Aid, 1898 27. First Recognized Human Virus, 1900 28. First American Food and Drug Purity Laws, 1906 29. First Human Laparoscopy, 1910 30. First Vitamin Identified, 1912 31. First Country to Legalize Abortion, 1920 32. First Physical Therapy Organization, 1921 33. First Isolation and Purification of Insulin, 1922 34. First Antibiotic, 1928 35. First Gender Affirmation Surgery, 1930 36. First Successful Joint Replacement, 1940 37. First City with Fluoridated Water, 1945 38. First Woman to Win the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, 1947 39. First FDA-Approved Chemotherapy Drug, 1949 40. First Drug to Treat Depression, 1952 41. First Automated Blood Counter, 1953 42. First Successful Human Organ Transplant, 1954 43. First Patient Treated with Ongoing Hemodialysis, 1960 44. First Oral Contraceptive, 1960 45. First Successful Human Xenotransplant, 1963 46. First Disease Cured Using Stem Cells, 1963 47. First Diagnostic Computed Tomography Scan, 1971 48. First Monoclonal Antibodies, 1975 49. First Sequencing of a DNA-Based Genome, 1977 50. First Magnetic Resonance Imaging of a Human, 1977 51. First Baby Born through In Vitro Fertilization, 1978 52. First Human Disease Eradicated Globally, 1980 53. First Robotic Surgery, 1985 54. First FDA-Approved Drug to Treat HIV/AIDS, 1987 55. First Laser Vision Corrective Surgery, 1988 56. First Mammal Cloned from an Adult Cell, 1996 57. First FDA-Approved Botanical Drug, 2006 58. First Country to Legalize Euthanasia, 2011 59. First 3D-Printed Prosthesis, 2012 60. Firsts of the Future Index