On the use of Anaesthetics in Midwifery.

Philadelphia: Lindsay & Blakiston, over two issues, April and May, 1849.. Soft cover. Very Good. iv,205-268,4,iv, and iv,iii,269-328,4,iv. The article is about 23 pages long all together. Light brown wraps, only slightly marked. Adverts for medical publications, apparatus and druggists with one sample pictorial plate. In January 1847 J Y Simpson began pioneering the use of ether as an anaesthetic in his midwifery practice, but by November of that year he was relying more on chloroform, which produced safer and more reliable results. In the United States Dr Charles Meigs was a strong opponent of the use of anaesthesia in midwifery. In 1848 he raised his objections and concerns about its use in response to a paper promoting and advocating chloroform in childbirth, by Simpson. Both these papers had previously been published in the Medical Examiner. Now, in this article, Simpson thoroughly responds to Meigs' objections. Each of Meigs' five points are carefully refuted. As such this 'Original Communication' by Simpson is valuable for illuminating his arguments and responses to his critics. There is a disclaimer at the front of the article from Dr Charles Meigs in which he politely states he would not be using chloroform in midwifery because he valued the guidance of the patient in telling him how she was at any one time, which helped him in his treatment of the woman. Elsewhere he had suggested that 'ten minutes of pain' suffered by the expectant mother was of very little consequence and worth it from a medical point of view. Other critics maintained that pain in childbirth was ordained by God as a consequence of Eve's disobedience, and anaesthesia would be thwarting God's will. When, however, Queen Victoria used chloroform to ease the pain of the birth of her son Leopold, in1853, initial disapproval from many physicians in the UK soon gave way to acceptance and the wider usage of anaesthetics in midwifery.