Medical Terminology Daily (MTD) is a blog sponsored by Clinical Anatomy Associates, Inc. as a service to the medical community. We post anatomical, medical or surgical terms, their meaning and usage, as well as biographical notes on anatomists, surgeons, and researchers through the ages. Be warned that some of the images used depict human anatomical specimens.

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A Moment in History

Georg Eduard Von Rindfleisch

Georg Eduard Von Rindfleisch
(1836 – 1908)

German pathologist and histologist of Bavarian nobility ancestry. Rindfleisch studied medicine in Würzburg, Berlin, and Heidelberg, earning his MD in 1859 with the thesis “De Vasorum Genesi” (on the generation of vessels) under the tutelage of Rudolf Virchow (1821 - 1902). He then continued as a assistant to Virchow in a newly founded institute in Berlin. He then moved to Breslau in 1861 as an assistant to Rudolf Heidenhain (1834–1897), becoming a professor of pathological anatomy. In 1865 he became full professor in Bonn and in 1874 in Würzburg, where a new pathological institute was built according to his design (completed in 1878), where he worked until his retirement in 1906.

He was the first to describe the inflammatory background of multiple sclerosis in 1863, when he noted that demyelinated lesions have in their center small vessels that are surrounded by a leukocyte inflammatory infiltrate.

After extensive investigations, he suspected an infectious origin of tuberculosis - even before Robert Koch's detection of the tuberculosis bacillus in 1892. Rindfleisch 's special achievement is the description of the morphologically conspicuous macrophages in typhoid inflammation. His distinction between myocardial infarction and myocarditis in 1890 is also of lasting importance.

Associated eponyms

"Rindfleisch's folds": Usually a single semilunar fold of the serous surface of the pericardium around the origin of the aorta. Also known as the plica semilunaris aortæ.

"Rindfleisch's cells": Historical (and obsolete) name for eosinophilic leukocytes.

Personal note: G. Rindfleisch’s book “Traité D' Histologie Pathologique” 2nd edition (1873) is now part of my library. This book was translated from German to French by Dr. Frédéric Gross (1844-1927) , Associate Professor of the Medicine Faculty in Nancy, France. The book is dedicated to Dr. Theodore Billroth (1829-1894), an important surgeon whose pioneering work on subtotal gastrectomies paved the way for today’s robotic bariatric surgery. Dr. Miranda.

Sources:
1. "Stedmans Medical Eponyms" Forbis, P.; Bartolucci, SL; 1998 Williams and Wilkins
2. "Rindfleisch, Georg Eduard von (bayerischer Adel?)" Deutsche Biographie
3. "The pathology of multiple sclerosis and its evolution" Lassmann H. (1999)  Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 354 (1390): 1635–40.
4. “Traité D' Histologie Pathologique” G.E.
Rindfleisch 2nd Ed (1873) Ballieres et Fils. Paris, Translated by F Gross


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Dr. John Benjamin Murphy

This article is part of the series "A Moment in History" where we honor those who have contributed to the growth of medical knowledge in the areas of anatomy, medicine, surgery, and medical research.

Dr. John Benjamin Murphy
John Benjamin Murphy

Dr. John Benjamin Murphy (1857 – 1916). An American surgeon, John Benjamin Murphy was born in Appleton, Wisconsin in 1857. He studied anatomy and physiology in Appleton under the care of Dr. H.W. Reilly, a local physician, after which J.B. Murphy entered the Rush Medical College, receiving his degree in 1879.  

Urged by the new trends in surgery and antisepsis, in 1882 Dr. Murphy he traveled to Vienna to study with Theodor Billroth (1829 – 1894), and then on to Heidelberg and Berlin. Upon his return, he started great advances in the surgery of the time. One of them was to propose the immediate extirpation of the vermiform appendix when acute appendicitis was diagnosed, as opposed to the common practice of waiting until the vermiform appendix ruptured. 

In 1892 Dr. Murphy became professor of clinical surgery at the College of Physicians and Surgeons in Chicago. Dr. Murphy is one of the founders of the American College of Surgeons. His surgical endeavors span many specialties including abdominal, thoracic, peripheral vascular, orthopedics, neurosurgery, etc. 

One of his well-known inventions was a metal sutureless compression anastomotic device, known to many as the “Murphy button”. Although in 1826 Denans and Henroz had created metal compression anastomotic devices with a similar concept, Murphy’s improvements on the device caused it to be used well into the 1900’s. The reason for this is the support the device had from the Mayo brothers, founders of the today well-known Mayo Clinic. Although not a stapler, the Murphy button established the need for anastomotic leakage control and the possibility of and end-to-end anastomosis. This makes Dr. Murphy's concept part of the history of surgical stapling. For an image of the Murphy anastomotic device click here, the link is courtesy of the Museum of Health Care at Kingston, Canada.

Murphy’s first use for his device was for a cholecystojejunostomy, the anastomosis of the gallbladder to the jejunum to allow drainage of the bile into the digestive system. 

His name is remembered in many eponyms: Murphy’s button, Murphy’s drip, Murphy’s test, Murphy’s punch, and the Murphy-Lane bone skid.

Sources:
1. “Cholecystointestinal, gastrointestinal, enterintestinal anastomosis, and approximation without sutures” Murphy JB. Med Rec (1892) 42: 665
2 . “John Benjamin Murphy – Pioneer of gastrointestinal anastomosis” Bhattacharya, K., & Bhattacharya, N. (2008). Indian J. Surg., 70, 330-333.
3. “The Story of Surgery” Graham, H. (1939) New York: Doubleday, Doran & Co.. Inc.
4. “Compression Anastomosis: History and Clinical Considerations”Kaidar-Person, O, et al, e. (2008) Am J Surg, 818-826.
5. “Current Practice of Surgical Stapling” Ravitch, M. M., Steichen, F. M., & Welter, R. (1991) Philadelphia: Lea& Febiger.
6.
“Rese¤as Históricas: John Benjamin Murphy” Parquet, R.A. Acta Gastroenterol Latinoam 2010;40:97
Image in the public domain. National Library of Medicine