Versalius contribution and methods were important to medicines he oversaw all stages in the Human anatomy dissection and pointed out some of the Galen’s mistakes. As doctors believed that Galen was right about everything. In the second edition of his book “The Fabric”, Versalius said there were no holes in the Septum of the heart. As before Versalius, Galen had to rely on dissecting animals for knowledge of human anatomy.
Another discovery of human anatomy was by William Harvey, who was born in Kent in 1578. Harvey studied medicine at Cambridge and Padua. He worked in London as a doctor and a Lecturer of Anatomy at the Royal College of Surgeons, before becoming Royal Physician to King James I and King Charles I.
Harvey did comparative studies on animals and humans. He realised that he could observe living animals hearts in action and his findings would also apply to humans. Before Harvey, doctors and Galen thought that new blood was constantly being made in the liver to replace blood that was burnt up in the body. But no one proved how blood circulated around in the body.
Harvey contribution to Human anatomy was that he discovered circulation of blood in human body. He showed how blood is carried away from the heart by the arteries and return to the heart in veins. Harvey proved that heart act as a pump recirculating the blood and that the blood does not burn up, so no other new organ is needed to manufacture new blood. Harvey also identified the difference between arteries and veins and he also noticed that blood changes colour as it passed through the lungs.
Harvey proved he was right, by dissecting live, cold-blooded animals whose hearts beat very slowly. This meant that he could see the movements of each muscle in the heart. Harvey dissected human bodies to build up a detailed knowledge of the heart. He tried to pump liquids past the valves in the reins but he could not do so. He also pushed thin rods down veins. This proved that the blood flowed in a one-way system around the body. He measured the amount of blood moved by each heartbeat, and calculated how much blood was in the body. Whenever Harvey disagreed with Galen or his own contemporaries he gave clear detailed proof of his own conclusions, and explained carefully why other doctors were wrong. As the microscopes were not invented till 1600s, Harvey could not see the capillaries or tiny blood carrying vessels, which exist between arteries and veins. As capillaries are too tiny to see with naked eye. But what ever Harvey observed helped the surgery a lot.
Harvey’s work did really change the practice of surgery, but was a very important discovery and turning point in Human anatomy. Bleeding continued to be performed and Blood transfusions were not really successfully, until the discovery of Blood Groups in 1900.
Both Versalius and Harvey’s discoveries and contribution to Human anatomy could not be possible without widespread communication of new discoveries. As communication played an important part, the invention of Printing press helped to spread new ideas by publishing of medical books and journals. John Gutenberg introduced printing in 1454 in Europe, which led to increase in publishing of medical books to doctors and surgeons worldwide.
