History Fact Finder | Medicine and Disease - When Was Anesthesia First Used?

When was anesthesia first used?

Several people began using anesthesia (a substance that produces loss of sensation with or without loss of consciousness) about the same time, in the 1840s. In 1844, dentist Horace Wells administered nitrous oxide (also known as laughing gas), which allowed him to pull teeth from unconscious patients. Crawford Williamson Long (1815–1878), a physician, used a chemical called ether as an anesthesia several times before giving a public demonstration in 1846 and publishing his findings in 1849. Prior to its medical use, ether had another purpose: people threw ether parties at which they inhaled vapors to experience the "exhilarating effects." As they behaved clumsily, staggering around, partygoers laughed at themselves and each other. Because ether can kill if given in large quantities, doctors discontinued its use after safer drugs came on the market. Although dentists now rely on local...

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