Joseph Lister (1827–1912): a pioneer of antiseptic surgery remembered a century after his death

Abstract

Joseph Lister was a remarkable British surgeon who pioneered principles of antisepsis. He died 100 years ago after devoting his life to developing and promoting safe, antiseptic surgery. In the 1800s as many as 80% of all operations resulted in infection but many people refused to accept the true nature of infection, believing instead that the deaths were coincidental. Lister became familiar with the work of Pasteur while working in Glasgow. He recognized the truth in Pasteur's work and in 1867 Lister published his landmark paper ‘On the Antiseptic Principle in the Practice of Surgery’ in the British Medical Journal. It proved to be a turning point in healthcare.