Vesalius Does he deserve his reputation as one of the most important figures in the history of anatomy?

We need to look at the situation before and after as well as what Vesalius did during his life. In other words how ‘B.A.D’ he was

Well before his time Doctors in Ancient Greece treated the human body as sacred and honoured it by refraining from cutting up dead bodies. Hippocrates and Galen were anatomically weak. In medieval times the educated physicians of Islamic East and Christian West practised medicine on the basis of the teaching of the Ancient Greeks. Student physicians did not have to attend dissections as they do today. Instead they were expected to learn from the teachings of Galen ( 129-216AD). For 1000 years after Galen’s death almost no original anatomical enquiries were performed.

Just before Vesalius From 1200 some dissections were carried out but not many - surgeons had to rely on the corpses of executed criminals. The church was against dissection. With no fridges to preserve the bodies, dissections could be performed only during the icy winter months. Physicians dressed in long robes, the Professor would sit in a high chair reading out relevant passages from works of Galen, while an assistant pointed to the organs alluded to and a dissector did the knifework. By the late Middle Ages, there was general dissatisfaction with this situation.

Then came the Renaissance Church opposition to dissection slowly melted away in late medieval times. During the Black Death, the papacy sanctioned post-mortems. It was not until 1537 that Pope Clement VII finally accepted the teaching of anatomy by dissection. Leonardo da Vinci produced 750 anatomical drawings, but they were not necessarily used for medicine.

Then came A new kid on the block Andreas VESALIUS

REAL BREAKTHROUGH? Andreas Vesalius Born 1514, son of Brussels pharmacist Studied in France and Italy As a student he stole the body of an executed criminal taking it home to study!! Became professor at Padua at the age of just 23 He worked out an agreement with a judge at the criminal court in Padua to schedule executions in accordance with his need for bodies.

Vesalius pioneered the use of visual aids for teaching anatomy Vesalius pioneered the use of visual aids for teaching anatomy. In 1538 he published a set of six elaborate charts basically following Galenic anatomy which became very popular. Later he became court physician to Emperor Charles V and Philip II of Spain

Vesalius was one of the first doctors to perform and take records of human dissections. He published some of the earliest illustrated books on human anatomy which greatly increased the understanding of how the human body works. In 1543 wrote the Fabric of the Human Body, 7 volumes presenting exact descriptions and illustrations of the skeleton, muscles, nervous system, blood vessels.

It was a really important book But can you work out why? Look carefully at what is happening. Talk to your partner for a minute and see what ideas you come up with Let’s take it step by step. This is an illustration from the front page of the book © The British Library Board. All Rights Reserved (shelfmark 780.i.4,5)

What does it show ? Clue 1 Vesalius conducts a public anatomy. The fact that the drawing appeared at the front of Vesalius’ book shows…… The importance he attached to doctors carrying out dissection for themselves

Deciphering the image: clue 2 The robed men represent ………… Galen and other Greek figures

Deciphering the image: clue 3 Vesalius is on the same level as these men . This tells us that….. He is no longer looking up at them

Clue 4 The dog and the monkey represent the animals that……. Galen used for anatomy

Clue 5 The unemployed demonstrators are shown… quarrelling under the table. This tells us that… They are not needed. Vesalius did the dissection himself, rather than sitting in a chair demonstrating

Clue 6 The spectators stood on wooden stands This tells us…

Of the Fabric of the Human Body was frequently reprinted and became a standard anatomical text. The illustrations were particularly influential and cheap reproductions that students could cut out and paste were produced for medical education. Vesalius is also considered a founder of the excellence of Italian universities in anatomy in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

Although it contained no earthshaking innovations, Of the Fabric of the Human Body provided a description of the body unprecedented in its detail.

Really that different? It was the first anatomy book to present the body in logical order, from the skeleton outward, as opposed to medieval anatomy texts which presented the parts of the body in the order which dissectors would encounter them, from the viscera inward.

The Fabric of the Human Body was important because.. A. It showed Galen was wrong and corrected some of his mistakes B. It showed the importance of dissection and direct observation C. It made use of drawings showing parts of dissected drawings D. It meant that accurate copies of his books spread widely

So what did he do to change anatomy? He praised OBSERVATION He challenged Galen, recognising that Galen’s beliefs rested on knowledge of animals rather than humans. He was able to correct 200 previously unquestioned theories e.g. lower jaw comprises one bone, not 2 as Galen thought. He criticised other doctors for mentioning things read from Galen’s books but which they had never seen. You’ve got to get under the skin not the covers of books!

Specifically He presented exact descriptions and illustrations of skeleton, muscles, nervous system, blood vessels etc Work of Vesalius lent impetus to explorations of the organs of the body, but he had a better grasp of structure than function.

His greatest contribution? AFTER Created a new atmosphere of enquiry Set anatomical study on firm foundations of observed fact No new discoveries, but after him appeals to Ancient authority lost validity Successors compelled to stress precision and personal first-hand observation Others like Pare followed his ideas

British Library website “Most importantly, Vesalius repeatedly stressed the idea that students must not depend upon the teachings of their elders, but must explore the inner workings of the human body for themselves”. www.bi.uk/learning/artimages/bodies/vesalius/renaissance.html