Hua Tuo

Pioneering Chinese physician renowned for surgery, anaesthesia, and medical exercises.

Chronology: 200 – 208

Origins & Early Life

Hua Tuo (c. 140–208), courtesy name Yuanhua, was a Chinese physician who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty. Historical texts, such as Records of the Three Kingdoms and Book of the Later Han record Hua Tuo as having been the first person in China to use anaesthesia during surgery. He used a general anaesthetic combining wine with a herbal concoction called mafeisan (麻沸散; literally "cannabis boil powder").

Pivotal Works & Achievements

Besides being respected for his expertise in surgery and anaesthesia, Hua Tuo was famous for his abilities in acupuncture, moxibustion, herbal medicine and medical daoyin exercises. He developed the Wuqinxi (五禽戲; literally "Exercise of the Five Animals") from studying the movements of the tiger, deer, bear, ape and crane. == Historical accounts == The oldest extant biographies of Hua Tuo are found in the official Chinese histories for the Eastern Han dynasty (25-220) and Three Kingdoms period (220–280) of China. The third-century historical text Records of Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi) and the fifth-century historical text Book of the Later Han (Houhanshu) record that Hua Tuo was from Qiao County (譙縣), Pei Commandery (沛郡) (in present-day Bozhou, Anhui) and that he studied Chinese...

Enduring Legacy & Impact

The historical impact and works continue to influence the modern world.

Source: Wikipedia