Beauty Borne out of Chaos: Molding a Surgical Subspecialty Through the World Wars
The chaos during the Great Wars provided the impetus for the genesis of modern plastic surgery. Collectively, the World Wars caused disfiguring injuries to thousands of American soldiers, which challenged their acceptance into society. The Wars, however, propelled 2 leaders in the field of plastic s...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wolters Kluwer Health
2023-06-01
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| Series: | Annals of Surgery Open |
| Online Access: | http://journals.lww.com/10.1097/AS9.0000000000000285 |
| _version_ | 1797732783052816384 |
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| author | Tina Bharani, MD Charles J. Yeo, MD, FACS |
| author_facet | Tina Bharani, MD Charles J. Yeo, MD, FACS |
| author_sort | Tina Bharani, MD |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The chaos during the Great Wars provided the impetus for the genesis of modern plastic surgery. Collectively, the World Wars caused disfiguring injuries to thousands of American soldiers, which challenged their acceptance into society. The Wars, however, propelled 2 leaders in the field of plastic surgery—Vilray P. Blair and James Barrett Brown. These two American pioneers used their surgical acumen and artistic skills to heal the wounds of the soldiers. During World War I, the wounds of injured soldiers were often poorly managed by inadequately trained surgeons and dentists. Upon return to the United States, these soldiers underwent specialized treatment under Blair’s supervision. During World War II, James Barrett Brown, a disciple of Blair, was appointed as a consultant in the war. He spearheaded the establishment of several plastic surgery centers in Europe. Upon his return from the War, he led the plastic surgery service at Valley Forge General Hospital in Phoenixville, PA, where thousands of soldiers were sent after their initial operations in the war zones. Care of war wounds served as an impetus for the development of new techniques in reconstructive and plastic surgery. These techniques included a delayed transfer of long pedicled flaps and split-thickness skin grafts. Through our archival research at the Bernard Becker Medical Library at Washington University in St. Louis, we provide evidence for how reconstructive surgical approaches were advanced during the Great Wars and helped restore some form of normalcy to the lives of the injured soldiers. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T12:18:33Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-3deefd34de32434b8d93ee86eaa4e9db |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2691-3593 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T12:18:33Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | Wolters Kluwer Health |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Annals of Surgery Open |
| spelling | doaj.art-3deefd34de32434b8d93ee86eaa4e9db2023-08-30T06:11:03ZengWolters Kluwer HealthAnnals of Surgery Open2691-35932023-06-0142e28510.1097/AS9.0000000000000285202306000-00020Beauty Borne out of Chaos: Molding a Surgical Subspecialty Through the World WarsTina Bharani, MD0Charles J. Yeo, MD, FACS1From the * Department of Surgery, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, PAFrom the * Department of Surgery, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, PAThe chaos during the Great Wars provided the impetus for the genesis of modern plastic surgery. Collectively, the World Wars caused disfiguring injuries to thousands of American soldiers, which challenged their acceptance into society. The Wars, however, propelled 2 leaders in the field of plastic surgery—Vilray P. Blair and James Barrett Brown. These two American pioneers used their surgical acumen and artistic skills to heal the wounds of the soldiers. During World War I, the wounds of injured soldiers were often poorly managed by inadequately trained surgeons and dentists. Upon return to the United States, these soldiers underwent specialized treatment under Blair’s supervision. During World War II, James Barrett Brown, a disciple of Blair, was appointed as a consultant in the war. He spearheaded the establishment of several plastic surgery centers in Europe. Upon his return from the War, he led the plastic surgery service at Valley Forge General Hospital in Phoenixville, PA, where thousands of soldiers were sent after their initial operations in the war zones. Care of war wounds served as an impetus for the development of new techniques in reconstructive and plastic surgery. These techniques included a delayed transfer of long pedicled flaps and split-thickness skin grafts. Through our archival research at the Bernard Becker Medical Library at Washington University in St. Louis, we provide evidence for how reconstructive surgical approaches were advanced during the Great Wars and helped restore some form of normalcy to the lives of the injured soldiers.http://journals.lww.com/10.1097/AS9.0000000000000285 |
| spellingShingle | Tina Bharani, MD Charles J. Yeo, MD, FACS Beauty Borne out of Chaos: Molding a Surgical Subspecialty Through the World Wars Annals of Surgery Open |
| title | Beauty Borne out of Chaos: Molding a Surgical Subspecialty Through the World Wars |
| title_full | Beauty Borne out of Chaos: Molding a Surgical Subspecialty Through the World Wars |
| title_fullStr | Beauty Borne out of Chaos: Molding a Surgical Subspecialty Through the World Wars |
| title_full_unstemmed | Beauty Borne out of Chaos: Molding a Surgical Subspecialty Through the World Wars |
| title_short | Beauty Borne out of Chaos: Molding a Surgical Subspecialty Through the World Wars |
| title_sort | beauty borne out of chaos molding a surgical subspecialty through the world wars |
| url | http://journals.lww.com/10.1097/AS9.0000000000000285 |
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