Ignaz semmelweis death

Ignaz semmelweis contribution to microbiology
Ignaz semmelweis education
Ignaz semmelweis hand washing

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Frontiers | Science News

Ignaz Semmelweis (1860) aged 42 | Public Domain

Frontiers for Young Minds takes you down on a dive into the depths of the historical scientific archives and introduces you to scientists you may have not heard about, but you should! This time, we tell you the story of the invaluable contribution of Ignaz Semmelweis to the field of antiseptic policy by his discovery in infectious disease prevention - or, why you among others should wash your hands.

By Paola Pellanda

The Covid pandemic has reminded us more than ever of the importance of washing our hands to stop spreading infections, but the idea that germs cause disease was widely ignored before the second half of the 19th century.

Decades before the champions of the germ theory formalized the relationship between germs and diseases, an unappreciated Hungarian physician, Ignaz Semmelweis, showed the importance of correct hand hygiene in medical practice, using the example of the deadly puerperal fever after childbirth.

A man with a mission

Ignaz Semmelweis was born in a wealthy family of Budapes

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Ignaz Semmelweis

Early pioneer of antiseptic procedures

"Semmelweis" redirects here. For the films, see Semmelweis (1940 film) and Semmelweis (1952 film).

The native form of this personal name is Semmelweis Ignác Fülöp. This article uses Western name order when mentioning individuals.

Ignaz Semmelweis
Semmelweis, aged 42 in 1860, photograph by Borsos and Doctor
Born	Semmelweis Ignác Fülöp (1818-07-01)1 July 1818 Buda, Hungary, Austrian Empire (now Budapest, Hungary)
Died	13 August 1865(1865-08-13) (aged 47) Oberdöbling, Austrian Empire (now Vienna, Austria)
Citizenship	Kingdom of Hungary
Alma mater	University of Vienna
Known for	Introducing hand disinfection standards, in obstetrical clinics, from 1847
Scientific career
Fields	Obstetrics, surgeries
Institutions	Vienna General Hospital, Szent Rókus Kórház
Spouse	Mária Weidenhofer (m. 1857)
Children	5

Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis (German:[ˈɪɡnaːtsˈzɛml̩vaɪs]; Hungarian: Semmelweis Ignác Fülöp[

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Scientist of the Day - Ignaz Semmelweis

Ignaz Semmelweis, a Hungarian physician, was born July 1, 1818. In 1846, Semmelweis was placed in charge of an obstetrics clinic at Vienna General Hospital, and was trying to solve the enigma of puerperal, or childbirth, fever. Over 13% of his clinic’s maternal patients died from postnatal complications. Puzzlingly, in the other Vienna Hospital Obstetrical Clinic, set up for the teaching of midwives, the mortality rate was only 2%. Semmelweiss's clinic taught, not midwives, but medical students. He did all sorts of experiments to find the reason for the difference in mortality rate, without success.

Then in 1847, a physician colleague of Semmelweis was nicked with a scalpel while dissecting a cadaver; he rapidly developed an infection and died. Interestingly, his symptoms were similar to those of women who died of childbirth fever (which was, in fact, a horrible death). It occurred to Semmelweis that perhaps some “cadaveral material” entered the wound and caused the infection and death.

Vienna General Hospital, 19th-century