Jean-Baptiste Denys

Jean -Baptiste Denis (* 1640 in Paris, † October 3, 1704 in Paris) was one of the doctors of the French King Louis XIV, he introduced the first fully documented blood transfusion in humans.

Life

Denis was born around the year 1640 as the son of a royal water engineer, who was responsible for the water supply of the Seine in the fountain in the garden of Versailles. It is undetectable whether Denis studied in Reims or Montpellier. Since 1664, he taught in his apartment in Paris mathematics, physics and medicine, these lectures were also disseminated in writing.

In the medical history, he went through the first documented blood transfusion. After the discovery of blood circulation by William Harvey in the period around 1650 and various attempts at blood transfusion between animals in England and France in the years 1665 and 1666 Jean -Baptiste Denis led on June 15, 1667 in Paris, the first recorded successful blood transfusion of animal blood ( a lamb) to man ( a 15 - year-old boy ) by. The boy survived the transfusion. After three other transfusions occurred two deaths, was arrested by the court on April 17, 1668, that transfusions could be performed only after approval by the Medical Faculty of the University of Paris. Then the procedure was initially not more practiced.