The Case Books of Dr. John Snow.

Snow, John: = Ellis, Richard Hancock (Ed.)

Publication Date: 1994

About this Item

Medical History, Suppl. No. 14. - London, Wellcome Institute of the History of Medicine, 1994, 8°, LVII, 633 pp., Frontispieceportrait of John Snow, orig. cloth. First Edition! "The Case Books of Dr John Snow, edited by Dr Richard Ellis, himself an anaesthetist, is a fascinating record based on John Snow's three manuscript Case Books in the Library of the Royal College of Physicians of London. The importance of this manuscript material is that, in this country at least, they comprise almost the whole of Snow's existing manuscript material. The Case Books run from 17 July 1848 to 5 June 1858, the year Snow died. Their relevance is largely in connection with his activities as an anaesthetist and, to a lesser degree, as a general practitioner. From the manuscript emerges much previously unused material about Snow's pioneer work as a practitioner of anaesthesia in the earliest years of the specialty. Dr Ellis, who died in May 1995, produced an absorbing work, prefaced by an introduction of some 35 pages by himself, and by a note on the prescription records by M P Earles. The preliminary pages also contain a glossary of Latin abbreviations used in the prescriptions. A transcription of the original Case Books occupies the greater part of the volume-550 pages. The end material includes a fascinating appendix of entries, in Snow's own hand, containing passages in which certain words have not been possible to decipher, despite the valuable help from Dr Anne Summers, Curator in the Department of Manuscripts at the British Library. Then follow some useful indexes: Index of Dentists; Index of Surgeons and other Medical Men; Index of Patients and Others; Index of Medical Conditions; Index of Places. From the pages of this publication, Snow's activities spring to life. For example, his entry for Thursday 7 April 1853 records his first administration of chloroform to Queen Victoria at the birth'. "Wendy Savage, JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF MEDICINE, 89 (May 1996), pp.273-274 John Snow (1813-1858) English physician and a leader in the development of anaesthesia and medical hygiene. He is considered one of the founders of modern epidemiology, in part because of his work in tracing the source of a cholera outbreak in London's Soho, which he identified as a particular public water pump. Snow's findings inspired the adoption of anaesthesia as well as fundamental changes in the water and waste systems of London, which led to similar changes in other cities, and a significant improvement in general public health around the world. - cf. wiki Richard Richard Hancock Ellis (1937-1995). Seller Inventory # 67569

Bibliographic Details

Title: The Case Books of Dr. John Snow.

Publication Date: 1994

Binding: Soft cover

Edition: 1st Edition