Before WW1

• Aseptic surgery

  • Removing germs before surgery (surgeons cleaned before surgery and the room and equipment are sterilized)
• X-rays

  • Discovered by Wilhelm Roentgen in 1895
  • Allowed doctors to see inside the body without/before surgery
  • No understanding of radiation risks
  • Not efficient
  • Easily broken
  • Difficult to move around
• Blood Transfusions

  • First human blood transfusion carried out by James Blundell in 1818
  • Blood couldn't be stored for later use
  • In 1894, Almroth Wright found chemicals to stop clotting but it caused side effects
  • In 1901, Karl Landsteiner discovered blood groups and stopped rejections