Louis Joseph Seutin (18 October 1793 – 29 January 1862) was a
Belgian
Belgian may refer to:
* Something of, or related to, Belgium
* Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent
* Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German
*Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...
doctor
Doctor or The Doctor may refer to:
Personal titles
* Doctor (title), the holder of an accredited academic degree
* A medical practitioner, including:
** Physician
** Surgeon
** Dentist
** Veterinary physician
** Optometrist
*Other roles
** ...
,
surgeon and
professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...
at the
Université Libre de Bruxelles.
Louis Joseph Ghislain Seutin born in
Nivelles
Nivelles (; nl, Nijvel, ; wa, Nivele; vls, Neyvel) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the Belgian province of Walloon Brabant. The Nivelles municipality includes the former municipalities of Baulers, Bornival, Thines, and Monst ...
, he studied medicine and took part in the
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...
as a doctor. After the
Belgian Revolution in 1830, he became the personal doctor of king
Leopold I and Head Doctor of the
Belgian army
The Land Component ( nl, Landcomponent, french: Composante terre) is the land branch of the Belgian Armed Forces. The King of the Belgians is the commander in chief. The current chief of staff of the Land Component is Major-General Pierre Gérard. ...
. He was later made a baron for his services.
He became Head Surgeon of St. Peters Hospital and a professor of surgery in 1834.
He invented the use of starched bandages. Seutin had travelled through Russia demonstrating his starched bandage, and his technique had been adopted by both the Russian army and navy by 1837. And, in 1848, was the first to use
chloroform for
anaesthesia
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), a ...
. His treatment of open
fractures
Fracture is the separation of an object or material into two or more pieces under the action of stress. The fracture of a solid usually occurs due to the development of certain displacement discontinuity surfaces within the solid. If a displa ...
was revolutionary. By improving
hygiene
Hygiene is a series of practices performed to preserve health.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "Hygiene refers to conditions and practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases." Personal hygiene refer ...
, he also drastically reduced the number of women who died in childbirth.
He became a
senator for the
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left.
__TOC__ Active liberal parties
This is a li ...
in 1853.
Baron Seutin Commander of the
Order of Leopold (Ordre de Léopold), who converted to homeopathy to become the founder of the «Belgian Homeopathic Magazine».
Seutin died in
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
on 29 January 1862, and is buried in
Laeken Cemetery
Laeken Cemetery (french: Cimetière de Laeken, nl, Begraafplaats van Laken) in Brussels, Belgium, is the city's oldest cemetery still in function and the resting place of the Belgian Royal Family. It is known as the ''Belgian Père Lachaise' ...
.
See the Belgian film by
Jean-Marie Piquint
Jean-Marie is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include:
* Jean-Marie Abgrall (born 1950), a French psychiatrist, criminologist, specialist in forensic medicine, cult expert, and graduate in criminal law
* Jean-Marie Ch ...
"
A Hauteur d'Homme
A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes' ...
" ("Man among men") with
Jacques Lippe
Ancient and noble French family names, Jacques, Jacq, or James are believed to originate from the Middle Ages in the historic northwest Brittany region in France, and have since spread around the world over the centuries. To date, there are over ...
.
Major works
* Du bandage amidonné ou, recueil de toutes les pièces composées sur ce bandage depuis son invention jusqu'a ce jour. Bruxelles: J.B.Tircher, 362 p., 1840.
* Traité de la méthode amovo-inamovible, comprenant des recherches historiques sur l'origine et la constitution de cette méthode; l'exposé de ses principes, de ses caractères et de ses procédés; et ses applications cliniques aux divers ordres de lésions et maladies chirurgicales (347 p. ill., 1851).
Sources
Louis-Joseph Seutin* De Paepe, Jean-Luc, Raindorf-Gérard, Christiane (ed.), ''Le Parlement Belge 1831–1894. Données Biographiques'', Brussels, Académie Royale de Belgique, 1996, p. 506–507.
* Douxchamps, José, ''Présence nobiliaire au parlement belge (1830–1970)'', Notes généalogiques, Wépion-Namur, José Douxchamps, 2003, p. 119–120.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Seutin, Louis-Joseph
People from Nivelles
1793 births
1862 deaths
Free University of Brussels (1834–1969) faculty
Belgian military doctors
Belgian politicians
Burials at Laeken Cemetery