Charles Heber McBurney, MD (17 February 1845 in

Roxbury, Massachusetts Roxbury () is a Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood within the City of Boston, Massachusetts. Roxbury is a Municipal annexation in the United States, dissolved municipality and one of 23 official neighborhoods of Boston used by the city for n ...

– 7 November 1913 in

Brookline, Massachusetts Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, in the United States, and part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area. Brookline borders six of Boston's neighborhoods: Brighton, Boston, Brighton, A ...

) was an American

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 ...

, well known for describing

McBurney's point McBurney's point is the name given to the point over the right side of the abdomen that is one-third of the distance from the anterior superior iliac spine to the umbilicus (navel). This is near the most common location of the appendix. Locati ...

appendicitis Appendicitis is inflammation of the appendix. Symptoms commonly include right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and decreased appetite. However, approximately 40% of people do not have these typical symptoms. Severe complications of a rup ...

Life and career

Charles McBurney was born in 1845. He graduated in the arts from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

in 1866, and qualified in medicine at the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

with an

M.D. Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. T ...

in 1870. He trained further in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

for 2 years, and started practice in New York in 1873. He became assistant surgeon to the

Bellevue Hospital Bellevue Hospital (officially NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue and formerly known as Bellevue Hospital Center) is a hospital in New York City and the oldest public hospital in the United States. One of the largest hospitals in the United States b ...

in 1880, and surgeon-in-chief of the Roosevelt Hospital (now

Mount Sinai West Mount Sinai West, opened in 1871 as Roosevelt Hospital, is affiliated with the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and the Mount Sinai Health System. The 514-bed facility is located in the Midtown West neighborhood of New York City. The fac ...

) in 1888. Here he did his most famous work on appendicitis, presenting his report on operative management to the New York Surgical Society in 1889. He described the point of greatest tenderness in appendicitis, which is now known as McBurney's point. He was professor of surgery from 1889 to 1907, and thereafter became emeritus professor of surgery. He continued to advance the treatment of appendicitis, and in 1894 he described the incision that he used; although the incision had previously been described by Louis L. MacArthur, it became known as McBurney's incision. He was awarded an honorary fellowship by the

Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) is a professional organisation of surgeons. The College has seven active faculties, covering a broad spectrum of surgical, dental, and other medical practices. Its main campus is located on ...

in 1905 during the college's 400th anniversary celebrations. The honorary fellowship was awarded to the 36 most well known surgeons of the time. In addition to his work on appendicitis, McBurney also published papers on the treatment of

pyloric stenosis Pyloric stenosis is a narrowing of the opening from the stomach to the first part of the small intestine (the pylorus). Symptoms include projectile vomiting without the presence of bile. This most often occurs after the baby is fed. The typical a ...

, management of

shoulder dislocation A dislocated shoulder is a condition in which the head of the humerus is detached from the shoulder joint. Symptoms include shoulder pain and instability. Complications may include a Bankart lesion, Hill-Sachs lesion, rotator cuff tear, or inj ...

with fracture of the humerus, and gallstone disease. He also introduced the use of rubber gloves during his operations to improve

aseptic technique Asepsis is the state of being free from disease-causing micro-organisms (such as pathogenic bacteria, viruses, pathogenic fungi, and parasites). There are two categories of asepsis: medical and surgical. The modern day notion of asepsis is deriv ...

, following the lead of

William Halsted William Stewart Halsted, M.D. (September 23, 1852 – September 7, 1922) was an American surgeon who emphasized strict aseptic technique during surgical procedures, was an early champion of newly discovered anesthetics, and introduced several ...

. After the U.S. President

William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in ...

was shot on September 6, 1901, Dr. McBurney led the medical team that oversaw his recovery after emergency surgery and announced to the press on September 10 that the President's condition was improving and that he was out of danger. He was a keen hunter and fisherman, and died in 1913 on a hunting trip in

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. His grandson was American archaeologist Charles McBurney and his great-grandson is English actor, writer and director

Simon McBurney Simon Montagu McBurney (born 25 August 1957) is an English actor, playwright, and theatrical director. He is the founder and artistic director of the Théâtre de Complicité, London. He has had roles in the films ''The Manchurian Candidate'', ...

References

External Sources

Guide to the Charles McBurney Papers 1894
at th
University of Chicago Special Collections Research Center
{{DEFAULTSORT:McBurney, Charles American surgeons 1845 births 1913 deaths People from Brookline, Massachusetts Harvard College alumni Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons alumni