Snow's Ether Inhaler

Anesthesia & Analgesia, 2013

W illiam T. G. Morton, MD, (1819-1868; dentist, Boston, MA) used several ether inhalers after his initial success with ether on a handkerchief, the anesthetic he administered to Ebenezer H. Frost (1824-1866) on September 30, 1846, for the extraction of a tooth. The precise design and dimensions of the inhaler that Morton used on October 16, 1846, at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, are not known. Illustrations of the inhaler he may have used on that day vary from a glass globe with a wooden spigot 1 to a glass globe with valves and a glass mouthpiece. 2 In 2009, 3 ether inhalers that were associated with Morton were described. 3 The whereabouts of one of the inhalers, referred to as inhaler A (Figs. 1 and 2), was not known when the article was written. The photographs of the inhaler (Fig. 2) and an inscribed bookplate (Fig. 3) were published in 1906. 2 This was the earliest known documentation of the inhaler. In November 2009, the authors positively identified this inhaler in the Archives and Special Collections, Massachusetts General Hospital, and commenced a renewed search for information relating to it. Correspondence from 1847 that probably relates to the inhaler was found. Table 1 is a summary of known information that may relate to the inhaler. The Morton ether inhaler (Massachusetts General Hospital Catalog of Art and Artifacts, Catalog number 768, Ether Apparatus) is currently on exhibit in the Paul S. Russell, MD, Museum of Medical History and Innovation (opened April 2012), Massachusetts General Hospital. This article will provide a description of this inhaler and information that may relate to it.

NPJ primary care respiratory medicine, 2016

Health professionals tasked with advising patients with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) how to use inhaler devices properly and what to do about unwanted effects will be aware of a variety of commonly held precepts. The evidence for many of these is, however, lacking or old and therefore in need of re-examination. Few would disagree that facilitating and encouraging regular and proper use of inhaler devices for the treatment of asthma and COPD is critical for successful outcomes. It seems logical that the abandonment of unnecessary or ill-founded practices forms an integral part of this process: the use of inhalers is bewildering enough, particularly with regular introduction of new drugs, devices and ancillary equipment, without unnecessary and pointless adages. We review the evidence, or lack thereof, underlying ten items of inhaler 'lore' commonly passed on by health professionals to each other and thence to patients. The exercise is intended as a ...

Anesthesia & Analgesia, 2013

T he development of anesthesia in the 1840s and the ensuing controversy over priority and patents generated considerable correspondence that was published in newspapers, periodicals, and books. With the passage of time and extensive discussion of the controversies, it is unusual to find previously unpublished correspondence on the subject of anesthesia by any of the key participants.

Resuscitation, 2001

Anaesthesia and Intensive Care, 2009

Three ether inhalers with inscriptions stating that they had been used in early ether anaesthesia were found. All three inhalers were initially linked to WTG Morton. Two of the inhalers were probably among several types of inhalers used by Morton. The third inhaler was found to have been incorrectly attributed to Morton. It was first used by John Foster Brewster Flagg, a dentist in Philadelphia.

Respiratory Medicine, 2013

This brief overview of the factors determining lung deposition of aerosols provides background information required by health care providers when instructing patients to use their prescribed inhalers. We discuss differences in the optimal inhalation manoeuvres for each type of aerosol generator and the difficulties patients face. Provision of short, clear instructions with demonstration of critical steps and checking technique during later clinical visits are necessary if these aerosolised medications are to be fully beneficial.

Unveiled at the conclusion of a meeting of the Royal Medical and Chirurgical Society in 1861,[1] 'Dr Nelson's Improved Inhaler' was one of the most important milestones in the genesis of reliable treatment of respiratory ailments in the modern era. Affordable and suitable for self-medication, the Dr Nelson's Inhaler offered simple and reliable relief for patients with respiratory and pulmonary ailments. Conspicuous for its modesty and simplicity, it was one of the most widely produced, reproduced, and used inhalation devices in the final third of the nineteenth century. By reconstructing the 'biography' of the Nelson Inhaler, this article will attempt to sketch a network of medical and commercial interests and expertise in London which aligned in the 1860s to help establish inhalation as a popular, inexpensive, and trusted form of medical therapy for pulmonary ailments. This article will look at what connects physicians, apothecaries, and patients in the era: the medicines and technologies that were prescribed, made, bought, and which caused wellness, side-effects, and even death. This approach allows us to develop a narrative of respiratory illness as it was experienced by practitioners and patients alike.

Science Museum Group journal, 2023

Unveiled at the conclusion of a meeting of the Royal Medical and Chirurgical Society in 1861,[1] 'Dr Nelson's Improved Inhaler' was one of the most important milestones in the genesis of reliable treatment of respiratory ailments in the modern era. Affordable and suitable for self-medication, the Dr Nelson's Inhaler offered simple and reliable relief for patients with respiratory and pulmonary ailments. Conspicuous for its modesty and simplicity, it was one of the most widely produced, reproduced, and used inhalation devices in the final third of the nineteenth century. By reconstructing the 'biography' of the Nelson Inhaler, this article will attempt to sketch a network of medical and commercial interests and expertise in London which aligned in the 1860s to help establish inhalation as a popular, inexpensive, and trusted form of medical therapy for pulmonary ailments. This article will look at what connects physicians, apothecaries, and patients in the era: the medicines and technologies that were prescribed, made, bought, and which caused wellness, side-effects, and even death. This approach allows us to develop a narrative of respiratory illness as it was experienced by practitioners and patients alike.

JPMA. The Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association, 1994