André Levret

André Levret, André Levrette ( born January 6, 1703 Paris, † January 22, 1780 ) was a French gynecologist.

Life

Andre Levret was one of the most famous French obstetrician of the 18th century. He was a contemporary of the famous English obstetrician William Smellie, and together with Jean -Louis Baudelocque he brought the science of obstetrics in the 18th century in France ahead.

He turned after completing his surgical studies to fully obstetrics. He was a close friend of the famous surgeon Antoine Louis (1723-1792) and was accoucheur de la cour ( obstetrician of the court ), as which he gave birth to Maria Josepha of Saxony ( 1731-1767 ), the mother of Louis XVI. . Levret was an excellent and famous in his time obstetrician. Special, who did much to the dissemination, use and improvement of the forceps. He gave her a new castle, the so-called French Castle. Since he provided them with a pelvic curvature, he provided a tool with which can also operate via the pelvic outlet ever since.

He put in a safe and fixed indications for use of this instrument. Not less merit than the forceps he acquired at the turn of the surgery and Caesarean section.

He was the first attention has been directed in France on the placenta previa and operate polyps of the uterus dared (but only with the help of an applied ligature ). From all over Europe flocked to his disciples who spread his fame. George William Stone (1737-1803), Johann Lukas Boër (1751-1835), Johann Friedrich Osiander (1787-1855) and many others who later self acclaimed teachers were counted themselves among his students. Levrets particular fondness for operations brought with it that he crossed the natural barrier, underestimated the forces of nature and more often surgically intervened when it was really necessary. Because of this and due to its considerable reputation he founded, without intending it, his own school, which had the beneficial effect of natural forces completely unnoticed and saw all salvation and the whole future of obstetrics only in the improvement of operations.

Levret developed in 1743 and a spatula around the base of the tongue to press down. It was thus a precursor instrument for the direct laryngoscopy dar.

Levret was a professor at the Académie Royale de Chirurgie.

Works

• Observations sur les Causes et les accidents de plusieurs accouchements laborieux. 4th Edition, C. Osmont, Paris 1747-1770.
• Observations sur la cure de plusieurs radicale polypes de la matrice de la gorge, et du nez. In 1749. 3rd edition, Paris 1771st
• Suite of observations sue les Causes etc. Paris 1751st
• Explication de plusieurs figures se le mécanisme de la grossesse et de l' accouchement. In 1752.
• L'art of accouchements etc. Delaguette, Paris 1753; 1761; In 1766.
• Essai sur l' abuse of règles générales etc. in 1766.
• Traité des accouchements laborieux. 1770.
• Observations sur l' allaitements des enfants. , 1781.