Joseph Lister

Lister applied microbial explanations of putrefaction to surgical wound care.

Influenced by Pasteur, Lister used carbolic acid in compound-fracture treatment from 1865 and published his antiseptic system in 1867. His methods changed substantially as evidence and practice evolved. Lister treated infection as a preventable process rather than an unavoidable consequence of surgery. Although his original spray apparatus and chemical routines did not remain standard, the underlying principle helped transform operating rooms and surgical expectations.

Sources

• Antisepsis and Asepsis and How They Shaped Modern Surgery — Don K. Nakayama, 2018