When was phlebotomy started

It is far more likely that bloodletting had a placebo effect, with those receiving the treatment simply believing it was making them feel better. Of course, releasing too much blood from a body will do irreparable harm.

An excellent example of a failed blood-letting is the death of George Washington. In the days before his death, Washington had been complaining of a sore throat. When he woke one night and had difficulty breathing, several doctors were called, but before the doctor could arrive, Washington ordered estate overseer George Rawlins to remove nearly a pint of his blood.

The history of phlebotomy began with ancient cultures that believed it was an effective way to treat virtually any illness. Egyptians, Greeks and the Romans used bloodletting to rid the human body of evil, while the Mesopotamians and Mayans used it for ritualistic purposes.

It was the Greeks, however, in the fifth century that helped bloodletting become known as a real medical procedure, allowing it to spread through other civilized areas. The Pilgrims are often credited as bringing phlebotomy to the United States in the 18 th century.

It was common at this time to use lancets that were fired into veins at multiple locations, withdrawing up to four pints of blood. Bloodletting at the time was used to cure acne, asthma, cancer, cholera, coma, convulsions, diabetes, epilepsy and much more. Did bloodletting work? It may have in some cases. If a person had high blood pressure, perhaps releasing some blood may have helped. If a person had a high iron level, blood-letting may have reduced it. Of course, there are those people who truly believed it would help, so it would; today, we call it that placebo effect.

Of course, releasing too much blood from a body will do irreparable harm. In most cases the patient would die and it would be blamed on the disease rather than blood letting practices.

Even though Hippocrates was familiar with blood-letting practices, then called venesection, he was unaware that the rapid release of blood in large volumes would kill the patient. It was his student, Galen, who discovered that there were limitations to the volume that could be taken from the body. Galen stated that the amount of blood was to be more than 6 to 7 ounces but less than 1 to 1.

It is currently used as the first step in diagnosing and monitoring therapeutic drug levels. Would you have considered it in is early stage? Resource: Kalanick, K.