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Horace Wells (January 21, 1815 – January 24, 1848) was an American dentist who pioneered the use of
anesthesia Anesthesia is a state of controlled, temporary loss of sensation or awareness that is induced for medical or veterinary purposes. It may include some or all of analgesia (relief from or prevention of pain), paralysis (muscle relaxation), ...
in dentistry, specifically the use of
nitrous oxide Nitrous oxide (dinitrogen oxide or dinitrogen monoxide), commonly known as laughing gas, nitrous, or nos, is a chemical compound, an oxide of nitrogen with the formula . At room temperature, it is a colourless non-flammable gas, and has a ...
(or laughing gas).


Early life

Wells was the first of three children of Horace and Betsy Heath Wells, born on January 21, 1815 in
Hartford, Vermont Hartford is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. It is on the New Hampshire border, at the intersection of Interstates 89 and 91. It is the site of the confluence of the White and Connecticut rivers; the Ottauquechee River also flo ...
. His parents were well-educated and affluent land owners, which allowed him to attend private schools in
New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
and
Amherst, Massachusetts Amherst () is a New England town, town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Connecticut River valley. As of the 2020 census, the population was 39,263, making it the highest populated municipality in Hampshire County (althoug ...
. At the age of 19 in 1834, Wells began studying dentistry under a two-year apprenticeship in Boston. The first dental school did not open until 1840 in Baltimore. At age 23, Wells published a booklet "An Essay on Teeth" in which he advocated for his ideas in preventive dentistry, particularly for the use of a toothbrush. In his booklet, he also described tooth development and oral diseases, where he mentioned diet, infection, and oral hygiene as important factors. After obtaining a degree, Wells set up a practice in
Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...
, with an associate named
William T. G. Morton William Thomas Green Morton (August 9, 1819 – July 15, 1868) was an American dentist and physician who first publicly demonstrated the use of inhaled ether as a surgical anesthetic in 1846. The promotion of his questionable claim to have been th ...
, who would become famous for his use of
ether In organic chemistry, ethers are a class of compounds that contain an ether group—an oxygen atom connected to two alkyl or aryl groups. They have the general formula , where R and R′ represent the alkyl or aryl groups. Ethers can again be c ...
as an anesthetic on October 16, 1846.


Career

After he completed dental training in Boston, Wells opened his own office in Hartford, Connecticut on April 4, 1836. Between 1841 and 1845, Wells became a reputable dentist in Hartford, where he had many patients and attracted apprentices. Among his patients were respected members of society such as William Ellsworth, the governor of Connecticut. His three apprentices were John Riggs, C. A. Kingsbury, and William Morton. In 1843, Wells and Morton started a practice in Boston and Wells continued to instruct Morton. John Riggs later became a partner and Kingsbury became one of the founders of Philadelphia Dental College. Wells first witnessed the effects of nitrous oxide on December 10, 1844, when he and his wife Elizabeth attended a demonstration by
Gardner Quincy Colton Gardner Quincy Colton (February 7, 1814, Georgia, Vermont – August 10, 1898, Geneva, Switzerland) was an American showman, medicine man, lecturer, and former medical student who pioneered the use of nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, in dentistr ...
billed in the ''Hartford Courant'' as "A Grand Exhibition of the Effects Produced by Inhaling Nitrous Oxide, Exhilarating, or Laughing Gas." The demonstration took place at Union Hall, Hartford. During the demonstration, a local apothecary shop clerk Samuel A. Cooley became intoxicated by
nitrous oxide Nitrous oxide (dinitrogen oxide or dinitrogen monoxide), commonly known as laughing gas, nitrous, or nos, is a chemical compound, an oxide of nitrogen with the formula . At room temperature, it is a colourless non-flammable gas, and has a ...
. While under the influence, Cooley did not react when he struck his legs against a wooden bench while jumping around. After the demonstration, Cooley was unable to recall his actions while under the influence, but found abrasions and bruises on his knees. From this demonstration, Wells realized the potential for the analgesic properties of
nitrous oxide Nitrous oxide (dinitrogen oxide or dinitrogen monoxide), commonly known as laughing gas, nitrous, or nos, is a chemical compound, an oxide of nitrogen with the formula . At room temperature, it is a colourless non-flammable gas, and has a ...
, and met with Colton about conducting trials. The following day, Wells conducted a trial on himself by inhaling
nitrous oxide Nitrous oxide (dinitrogen oxide or dinitrogen monoxide), commonly known as laughing gas, nitrous, or nos, is a chemical compound, an oxide of nitrogen with the formula . At room temperature, it is a colourless non-flammable gas, and has a ...
and having John Riggs extract a tooth. Upon a successful trial where he did not feel any pain, Wells went on to use nitrous oxide on at least 12 other patients in his office. In 1844, Hartford did not have a hospital, so Wells sought to demonstrate his new findings in either Boston or New York. In January 1845 he chose to go to Boston where he had previously studied dentistry, and also knew William Morton, his former student and associate. Wells and Morton's practice had been dissolved in October 1844, but they remained on friendly terms. Morton was enrolled in Harvard Medical School at the time and agreed to help Wells introduce his ideas, although Morton was skeptical about the use of nitrous oxide. He gave a demonstration to medical students at the
Massachusetts General Hospital Massachusetts General Hospital (Mass General or MGH) is the original and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School located in the West End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. It is the third oldest general hospital in the United Stat ...
in
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
on January 20, 1845. However, the gas was improperly administered and the patient cried out in
pain Pain is a distressing feeling often caused by intense or damaging stimuli. The International Association for the Study of Pain defines pain as "an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with, or resembling that associated with, ...
. The patient later admitted that although he cried out in pain, he remembered no pain and did not know when the tooth was extracted. It was later found that the gas is not as effective on both obese people and alcoholics—the patient was both. The audience of students in the surgical theatre jeered "humbug". After the embarrassment of his failed demonstration, Wells immediately returned home to Hartford the next day. Shortly after, he became ill and his dental practice became sporadic. On February 5, 1845, Wells advertised his home for rent. On April 7, 1845, Wells advertised in the ''Hartford Courant'' that he was going to dissolve his dental practice, and referred all his patients to Riggs, the man who had extracted his tooth. In October 1846, Morton gave a successful demonstration of ether anesthesia in Boston. Following Morton's demonstration, Wells published a letter accounting his successful trials in 1844 in an attempt to claim the discovery of anesthesia. His efforts in establishing his claim were mostly unsuccessful. Despite his advertisement for dissolving his practice in April 1845, Wells sporadically continued his practice, with his last daybook entry being on November 5, 1845.


Later years

Wells closed his office nine times and relocated six different times between 1836 and 1847. He closed his office due to ill health, although his physician could not find any physical cause for his non-specific complaints. He mentioned his recurring illness in a letter to his sister Mary Wells Cole in April 1837. He also became ill shortly after marrying Elizabeth Wales in 1838 and having his only son Charles Thomas Wells. During winter months, he would not write letters to any family or friends, except for his published letter in 1846 after Morton's ether demonstration. Wells definitively ended his dental practice in late 1845 and began selling shower baths for which he received a patent on November 4, 1846. He also planned to sail to Paris to purchase paintings to resell in the United States. He traveled to Paris in early 1847, where he petitioned the Academie Royale de Medicine and the Parisian Medical Society for recognition in the discovery of anesthesia. Wells moved to New York City in January 1848, leaving his wife and young son behind in Hartford. He lived alone at 120 Chambers St in Lower Manhattan and began self-experimenting with ether and chloroform, and he became addicted to chloroform. The effects of sniffing chloroform and ether were unknown. Wells rushed into the street on January 21, 1848, his 33rd birthday, and threw
sulfuric acid Sulfuric acid (American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphuric acid ( Commonwealth spelling), known in antiquity as oil of vitriol, is a mineral acid composed of the elements sulfur, oxygen and hydrogen, with the molecular formu ...
over the clothing of two prostitutes. He was committed to New York's infamous
Tombs A tomb ( grc-gre, τύμβος ''tumbos'') is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called ''immureme ...
Prison. As the influence of the drug waned, his mind started to clear and he realised what he had done. He asked the guards to escort him to his house to pick up his shaving kit. He committed suicide in his cell on January 24, slitting his left
femoral artery The femoral artery is a large artery in the thigh and the main arterial supply to the thigh and leg. The femoral artery gives off the deep femoral artery or profunda femoris artery and descends along the anteromedial part of the thigh in the fem ...
with a razor after inhaling an analgesic dose of chloroform. He is buried at Cedar Hill Cemetery in Hartford, Connecticut.


Legacy

Twelve days before his death, the Parisian Medical Society voted and honored him as the first to discover and perform surgical operations without pain. In addition, he was elected an honorary member and awarded an honorary MD degree. However, Wells died unaware of these decisions. Wells first voiced his concern for minimizing his patient's pain during dental procedures in 1841. He was known for caring about his patient's comfort. During his time as a dentist, Wells advocated for regular check ups for dental hygiene, and also began the practice of pediatric dentistry in order to start dental care early. The
American Dental Association The American Dental Association (ADA) is an American professional association established in 1859 which has more than 161,000 members. Based in the American Dental Association Building in the Near North Side of Chicago, the ADA is the world's ...
honored Wells posthumously in 1864 as the discoverer of modern anesthesia, and the
American Medical Association The American Medical Association (AMA) is a professional association and lobbying group of physicians and medical students. Founded in 1847, it is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Membership was approximately 240,000 in 2016. The AMA's state ...
recognized his achievement in 1870. A monument to Horace Wells was raised in the
Place des États-Unis The Place des États-Unis (; "United States Square") is a public space in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France, about 500 m south of the Place de l'Étoile and the Arc de Triomphe. It consists of a plaza, approximately long and wide, tre ...
, Paris.
Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...
, has a statue of Horace Wells in
Bushnell Park Bushnell Park in Hartford, Connecticut is the oldest publicly funded park in the United States. It was conceived by the Reverend Horace Bushnell in the mid-1850s at a time when the need for open public spaces was just starting to be recognized. T ...
.


In popular culture

* The story of Dr. Wells'
self-experimentation Self-experimentation refers to the special case of single-subject research in which the experimenter conducts the experiment on themselves. Usually this means that a single person is the designer, operator, subject, analyst, and user or reporter ...
with drugs was explored in an episode of Science Channel's '' Dark Matters: Twisted But True'' in a story entitled "Jekyll vs Hyde", comparing it to the ''
Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde'' is a 1886 Gothic novella by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson. It follows Gabriel John Utterson, a London-based legal practitioner who investigates a series of strange occurrences between his old ...
''. * A full-length theatrical production, entitled ''Ether Dome'', written by Elizabeth Egloff and directed by Michael Wilson centers around the story of Horace Wells' discovery of
nitrous oxide Nitrous oxide (dinitrogen oxide or dinitrogen monoxide), commonly known as laughing gas, nitrous, or nos, is a chemical compound, an oxide of nitrogen with the formula . At room temperature, it is a colourless non-flammable gas, and has a ...
as an anesthetic, as well as the life of his protege and partner, William Morton.


See also

*
Dental anesthesiology In the United States, dental anesthesiology is the specialty of dentistry that deals with the advanced use of general anesthesia, sedation and pain management to facilitate dental procedures. A dentist anesthesiologist is a dentist who has successf ...
*
Humphry Davy Sir Humphry Davy, 1st Baronet, (17 December 177829 May 1829) was a British chemist and inventor who invented the Davy lamp and a very early form of arc lamp. He is also remembered for isolating, by using electricity, several elements for t ...
*
Crawford Long Crawford Williamson Long (November 1, 1815 – June 16, 1878) was an American surgeon and pharmacist best known for his first use of inhaled sulfuric ether as an anesthetic An anesthetic (American English) or anaesthetic (British English; ...
*
James Young Simpson Sir James Young Simpson, 1st Baronet, (7 June 1811 – 6 May 1870) was a Scottish obstetrician and a significant figure in the history of medicine. He was the first physician to demonstrate the anaesthetic properties of chloroform on humans ...
*
Place des États-Unis The Place des États-Unis (; "United States Square") is a public space in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France, about 500 m south of the Place de l'Étoile and the Arc de Triomphe. It consists of a plaza, approximately long and wide, tre ...


Gallery

File:Horace Wells plaque - Hartford, CT.JPG, Horace Wells Plaque File:Horace Wells Monument, Hartford CT.JPG, Statue of Horace Wells in Hartford, Connecticut File:Horace Wells Monument, Cedar Hill Cemetery, Hartford, CT - February 2016.JPG, Horace Wells Burial Monument (1909), Cedar Hills Cemetery, Hartford, Connecticut (Louis Potter, sculptor). File:Horace Wells 8.JPG, Statue of Horace Wells in Paris


References


Further reading

*
Musto, David F., "They Inhaled"
New York Times, August 12, 2001 (review of ''Ether Day'') * *


External links



Accessed: 2008-06-17 *


Herald (Scotland)
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wells, Horace 1815 births 1848 deaths American anesthesiologists American dentists Burials at Cedar Hill Cemetery (Hartford, Connecticut) People from Hartford, Connecticut People from Hartford, Vermont Suicides by sharp instrument in the United States Suicides in New York City 1840s suicides 19th-century dentists