Sterilizing autoclave
Place where the object is located
Museum for the History of Medicine, School of Medicine, A.U.Th., Thessaloniki, Greece
Story of the object
This is a sterilizing autoclave built in 1910 by the Greek company company of Ath. Papapostolou, in Thessaloniki, Greece. Until 1938 it used steam created by combustible material. In 1938, the machine was modified to work with electricity.
HISTORICAL USE
There are references that the ancient Egyptians were among the first to use copper so as to prevent inflammation. The Hippocratic authors made clear that wounds should be kept clean, and instruments/bandages used should also be clean. It should be noted that Hippocrates tried to cure the plague of Athens with the use of fires with aromatic substances. We should take into account that even if the ancient people understood that cleanliness and avoidance of inflammation were crucial for the preservation of health, they had no idea about pathogens or infections or what inflammation actually was. This lack of knowledge lasted until the second half of the 17th century. In 1683, Anton Van Leeuwenhoek developed an interest in lenses and started to experiment with optics. He created a microscope and managed for the first time to observe micro-organisms becoming thus, the “Father of microscopy”. This discovery was crucial to understanding the concepts of infection and infection prevention.
In 1862 Louis Pasteur, a French chemist and microbiologist published findings on how some diseases are caused by germs and confirmed that heat kills microbes, setting the foundations for high temperature sterilisation, while he also determined that moist heat was more effective than dry heat.
In the 1880 one of Louis’ pupils, Charles Chamberland developed the first pressure steam steriliser, or autoclave. The name Autoclave comes from Greek αυτο – meaning self and Latin clavis- meaning key. Other scientists contributed to the engineering of the autoclave, one of them being J.J Kinyoun, an American scientist who made important contributions to the autoclave by recommending that a vacuum process could be used to increase the penetrability of objects.
From the 1930’s onwards, the design and functionality of steam sterilisers were perfected, including development of temperature control systems monitoring chamber temperature and pressure. Other methods of sterilisation were also established such as ethylene oxide. In 1968, Dr. Earle Spaulding developed a systematic approach to sterilisation of medical devices. The Spaulding classification, which is still used today, categorises items based on their usage and patient contact. This forms the basis for regulations regarding how to manage the decontamination and sterilisation of different surgical devices and instruments.
LITERATURE REVIEW
• Norn S, Kruse PR, Kruse E. Traek af injektionens historie [On the history of injection]. Dan Medicinhist Arbog. 2006;34:104-13
• Cavaillon JM, Legout S. Duclaux, Chamberland, Roux, Grancher, and Metchnikoff: the five musketeers of Louis Pasteur. Microbes Infect. 2019 Jun-Jul;21(5-6):192-201
• Cavaillon JM. Once upon a time, inflammation. J Venom Anim Toxins Incl Trop Dis. 2021 Apr 9;27:e20200147.
• McDonnell G, Burke P. Disinfection: is it time to reconsider Spaulding? J Hosp Infect. 2011 Jul;78(3):163-70.
• SPAULDING EH. Role of disinfection procedures in control of hospital staphylococcal infectins. J Albert Einstein Med Cent (Phila). 1960 Apr;8:113-21
This is a gas autoclave of cylindrical shape with brass cover which is also equipped with a tightening chuck jaw. It was used in the sterilization of laboratory material. This item was used in the bacteriological laboratories of Companhia das Aguas de Lisboa (nowadays EPAL). It includes a pressure metre in brass, from Société Anonyme des Etablissements Jules Richard
HISTORICAL USE
There are references that the ancient Egyptians were among the first to use copper so as to prevent inflammation. The Hippocratic authors made clear that wounds should be kept clean, and instruments/bandages used should also be clean. It should be noted that Hippocrates tried to cure the plague of Athens with the use of fires with aromatic substances. We should take into account that even if the ancient people understood that cleanliness and avoidance of inflammation were crucial for the preservation of health, they had no idea about pathogens or infections or what inflammation actually was. This lack of knowledge lasted until the second half of the 17th century. In 1683, Anton Van Leeuwenhoek developed an interest in lenses and started to experiment with optics. He created a microscope and managed for the first time to observe micro-organisms becoming thus, the “Father of microscopy”. This discovery was crucial to understanding the concepts of infection and infection prevention.
In 1862 Louis Pasteur, a French chemist and microbiologist published findings on how some diseases are caused by germs and confirmed that heat kills microbes, setting the foundations for high temperature sterilisation, while he also determined that moist heat was more effective than dry heat.
In the 1880 one of Louis’ pupils, Charles Chamberland developed the first pressure steam steriliser, or autoclave. The name Autoclave comes from Greek αυτο – meaning self and Latin clavis- meaning key. Other scientists contributed to the engineering of the autoclave, one of them being J.J Kinyoun, an American scientist who made important contributions to the autoclave by recommending that a vacuum process could be used to increase the penetrability of objects.
From the 1930’s onwards, the design and functionality of steam sterilisers were perfected, including development of temperature control systems monitoring chamber temperature and pressure. Other methods of sterilisation were also established such as ethylene oxide. In 1968, Dr. Earle Spaulding developed a systematic approach to sterilisation of medical devices. The Spaulding classification, which is still used today, categorises items based on their usage and patient contact. This forms the basis for regulations regarding how to manage the decontamination and sterilisation of different surgical devices and instruments.
LITERATURE REVIEW
• Norn S, Kruse PR, Kruse E. Traek af injektionens historie [On the history of injection]. Dan Medicinhist Arbog. 2006;34:104-13
• Cavaillon JM, Legout S. Duclaux, Chamberland, Roux, Grancher, and Metchnikoff: the five musketeers of Louis Pasteur. Microbes Infect. 2019 Jun-Jul;21(5-6):192-201
• Cavaillon JM. Once upon a time, inflammation. J Venom Anim Toxins Incl Trop Dis. 2021 Apr 9;27:e20200147.
• McDonnell G, Burke P. Disinfection: is it time to reconsider Spaulding? J Hosp Infect. 2011 Jul;78(3):163-70.
• SPAULDING EH. Role of disinfection procedures in control of hospital staphylococcal infectins. J Albert Einstein Med Cent (Phila). 1960 Apr;8:113-21
This is a gas autoclave of cylindrical shape with brass cover which is also equipped with a tightening chuck jaw. It was used in the sterilization of laboratory material. This item was used in the bacteriological laboratories of Companhia das Aguas de Lisboa (nowadays EPAL). It includes a pressure metre in brass, from Société Anonyme des Etablissements Jules Richard
Unit of the Educational Material connected (5 - 1)
Label
Dimensions: 82cm x 107cm. The autoclave was donated to the Museum for the History of Medicine by Prof. of Biochemistry G. Koliakos and his wife Prof. of Histology K. Koyzi-Koliakou.
