[1/9] In honour of the animals that contribute to medical advancement, here’s a story of how four scientists and a donkey made a discovery in the 19th c that has helped to save thousands of lives on the operating table! #histmed #oldoptheatre #animalsinmedicine #frontliners 
[2/9]Naturalist and intrepid explorer Charles Waterton was invited by colleague Sir Joseph Banks, surgeon Benjamin Brodie and veterinarian William Sewell to test the effects of the poison curare (wourali, back then).
[3/9] They injected a donkey with enough curare that she collapsed after ten minutes, then performed an emergency tracheotomy using a pair of bellows to keep the animal alive. After about four hours of pumping, the animal recovered enough to rise and walk around the room.
[4/9] The men had demonstrated that curare acted as a muscle relaxant which left the heart unaffected. This would have promising implications for use in surgery, particularly in thoracic and abdominal procedures...
[5/9] but it would be a century before the paralysing agent was isolated from the plant and tested. The human guinea pig was Dr Frederick Prescott of the Wellcome Research Institute. He was injected with d-tubocurarine and kept alive by artificial respiration.
[6/9] His colleagues also ripped plasters from his body to test the drug’s analgesic properties. There were none. Ouch! Thankfully, the pain was worth it. Curare was used into the 1960s alongside anaesthesia before safer synthetic equivalents were developed.
[7/9] But what became of the donkey?! Waterton wrote in his diary, ‘the kind hearted reader will rejoice on learning that Earl Percy, pitying her misfortunes, sent her down from London to Walton Hall. There she goes by the name of Wouralia … she shall end her days in peace.'
[8/9]In fact, she lived another 25 years! When Wouralia died in 1839, the St. James’s Chronicle celebrated her contribution to medical science in an obituary.
[9/9] So please show your appreciation for the animals that have allowed us to live longer & healthier lives. #Frontliners in their own right 💜
Help us continue the stories with your support by making a one time or ongoing donation to the museum👉oldoperatingtheatre.com/support-us/
Thanks!
Help us continue the stories with your support by making a one time or ongoing donation to the museum👉oldoperatingtheatre.com/support-us/
Thanks!
