Sir Alfred Poland (1822 – 1872) was a 19th-century

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

surgeon In modern medicine, a surgeon is a medical professional who performs surgery. Although there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon usually is also a licensed physician or received the same medical training as ...

. He is now best known for the first account of the condition later known as

Poland syndrome Poland syndrome is a birth defect characterized by an underdeveloped chest muscle and short webbed fingers on one side of the body. There may also be short ribs, less fat, and breast and nipple abnormalities on the same side of the body. Typical ...

, a congenital deformity now described as an underdevelopment or absence of the chest muscle ( pectoralis) on one side of the body and webbing of the fingers (cutaneous

syndactyly Syndactyly is a condition wherein two or more digits are fused together. It occurs normally in some mammals, such as the siamang and diprotodontia, but is an unusual condition in humans. The term is from Greek σύν, ''syn'' 'together' and δάκ� ...

) of the hand on the same side (

ipsilateral Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position pro ...

hand).

Early life

He was born in London, England, the son of William Poland, and educated at Highgate, London, Paris and Frankfurt.

Career

In 1839 he became a pupil of Aston Key at Guy's Hospital and after qualifying became Demonstrator of Anatomy, Assistant Surgeon to Guy's Hospital in 1849 and full Surgeon in 1861. He was then put in general charge of the Ophthalmic Department. From 1848-1861 he was Surgeon to the Royal Ophthalmic Hospital, Moorfields, but then abandoned ophthalmic practice due to ill health. He continued to see a few patients at Guy's up to his early death in 1872. Poland described the disease that bears his name (

) in 1841, in a paper titled "Deficiency of the pectoral muscles", in which he described the dissected body of George Elt, a deceased convict. He received the

eponym An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

more than a century later in 1962 through the recognition of British surgeon Patrick Wensley Clarkson (1911-1969) after he operated on a case similar to that of Poland. He was awarded the

Fothergillian prize The Medical Society of London is one of the oldest surviving medical societies (being organisations of voluntary association, rather than regulation or training) in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1773 by the Quaker physician and philanthro ...

in 1853 by the

London Medical Society The Medical Society of London is one of the oldest surviving medical societies (being organisations of voluntary association, rather than regulation or training) in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1773 by the Quaker physician and philanthro ...

for his essay on "''Injuries and Wounds of the Abdomen''".

Reputation and character

Apart from his surgical dexterity he was renowned at the hospital for his encyclopedic knowledge and the excellence of his presentations, both oral and written. He was an extremely popular teacher, but his career was punctuated by recurrent illness so that he remarked that he was like a cat and had nine lives. After one severe bout of

hemoptysis Hemoptysis is the coughing up of blood or blood-stained mucus from the bronchi, larynx, trachea, or lungs. In other words, it is the airway bleeding. This can occur with lung cancer, infections such as tuberculosis, bronchitis, or pneumonia, and ...

, his physician ordered him to bed, only to see him the next day doing the rounds with his students. Alfred Poland was a modest, retiring man, who was quite careless about his appearance. He was warned by the Treasurer to dress more decently and cleanly, but ignored this advice. He was known by his colleagues to be an excellent surgeon, but would time his operations at unusual hours so that few observed him. Perhaps for those reasons, he had a small practice.

Death

He died of

consumption Consumption may refer to: *Resource consumption *Tuberculosis, an infectious disease, historically * Consumption (ecology), receipt of energy by consuming other organisms * Consumption (economics), the purchasing of newly produced goods for curren ...

in 1872. He continued to see patients until four days before his death.

References

External links

Alfred Poland
WhoNamedIt. {{DEFAULTSORT:Poland, Alfred British surgeons 1822 births 1872 deaths Physicians of Guy's Hospital 19th-century deaths from tuberculosis Tuberculosis deaths in the United Kingdom