And when he cut still higher, the animal would cease breathing — a truly extraordinary experimental linkage of neurological structure and function. But he was also elevating them to levels not equaled for well over a millennium. In the process, he was creating truly remarkable anatomic specimens. It consists of seven volumes describing the bones, muscles, blood vessels, nerves, digestive system, heart, and brain. The works contains over illustrations, many of which are recognized today as among the most exquisite anatomic images ever produced.
Produced by artists he retained, the drawings were engraved on wood blocks for reproduction, and they represent a quantum leap beyond their predecessors in anatomic detail and sophistication.
It is simply beautiful, reflecting an unparalleled degree of both scientific erudition and aesthetic sensitivity. It showed the body not as inert flesh but enlivened and in motion, emphasizing the correlation of form and function.
It also established vastly higher standards for anatomical research and teaching, setting biology and medicine on new paths of discovery.
Instead, Vesalius did the dissection himself, surrounded by mesmerised students, and lectured as he went. This is wonderfully illustrated on the frontispiece of the Fabrica : on the left hand side of the exposed cadaver is Vesalius, pointing out the various abdominal contents, getting his hands dirty! Students surround Vesalius, clamouring to get to the front, eager to see the great anatomist at work. Image 1: Frontispiece, Vesalius, De Humani corporis fabrica libri septem. Credit: Wellcome Collection.
CC BY. Ultimately, by the end of the sixteenth century, Vesalius had surpassed Galen as the primary anatomical authority. He is thought of as one of the great innovators of anatomy, not because he discovered anything radically new, but because he altered the way in which the medical community thought about and practised anatomy. Sources Ball, James Moores.
Andreas Vesalius, the Reformer of Anatomy. Saint Louis: Medical Science Press, Benini, Arnaldo, and Susan K. Brock, Arthur John, trans. Galen on the Natural Faculties. London: W. Heinemann, O'Malley, Charles Donald. Andreas Vesalius of Brussels, Berkeley: University of California Press, Pearn, John. The Fabrica De humani corporis fabrica libri septem of Andreas Vesalius.
September 14, An invited lecture on the occasion of the acquisition of the English Translation of Vesalius' epic work, Brisbane, Herston. San Francisco, California: Norman Publishing, Saunders, John, and Charles D. Vesalius, Andreas. De corporis humani fabrica libri septem. His work was so important that after a few weeks of publication was named Emperor Charles V's doctor [ 4 , 5 , 7 - 9 ]. It was composed of seven volumes, and the third volume was dedicated to the vasculature in which we find a detailed description of the arteries and veins that was possibly essential for the future work of William Harvey in his description of circulation.
It was also through his experiments that it was able to link the relationship between pulse and heart contraction [ 4 , 5 , 7 - 9 ]. The VI volume refers to the anatomy of the heart and a small part about the lungs, this first edition despite the description of the heart to be well detailed it is not noted as exceptional to the point that is still rooted in the concepts of Galen, although refute the existence of pores that communicate the right side with the left side of the heart allowing blood to pass through the septum, a concept that helped to better understand the system [ 4 , 5 , 7 - 9 ].
Figure 2. The illustrations drawn attention at the time because they were larger and closer to reality than any previous publication, and were very well applied didactically, as Vesalius often correlated visual content with text.
The second edition was published in , having numerous improvements in the text, and expanded the chapter on his physiological experiments, including the report given on the effect of nerve section on laryngeal paralysis and recurrent laryngeal nerve section, besides adding the description of the venous valves and two new chapters. The illustrations were better due to the print quality in a thicker paper.
In this edition, an important quote from Vesalius confirms the absence of pores invisible to the naked eye in the interventricular septum, moving away permanently from Galen's vision. A study found that there were a total of copies of the second edition of De Humani Corporis Fabrica at major universities and libraries across Europe and the United States showing the rarity and historical importance that the work has even after years of its publication [ 4 , 5 , 7 - 9 ]. Figure 3. Vesalius' power of observation allowed him to describe quite accurately the pericardial anatomy: "The heart as a whole is covered by a membranous envelope which is not attached to any point.
This wrap is much broader than the heart and has in its interior an aqueous humor The prototype of anatomopathological methodology was performed by Andreas Vesalius in , by correlating the signs and symptoms of a patient with pathological changes consistent with aortic aneurysm revealed in postmortem examination. This kind of research allowed in in Bologna, Giovanni Morgagni to describe the possibility of diagnosis based on findings of the "Anatomy of morbid corpses", this clinicopathological project culminated in the publication of his iconic work "The Seats and Causes of Diseases Investigated by Anatomy" in which approximately dissection reviews were described to accurately identify the injury giving rise to the symptoms observed in patients while they were alive, consolidating a new way of thinking and teach medicine, the anatomoclinical correlation [ 5 , 7 - 9 ].
There has been evidence that Vesalius was preparing a third edition of his De Humani Corporis Fabrica work because they found in his works, thousands of notes and corrections of all kinds, from deletions, additions and transpositions phrases to footnotes.
Particularly the first three quarters of his work contained many modifications and to this day it is not know why this third edition was never released. Still, these changes demonstrate an admirable concern for the quality of his work and a willingness to correct even the smallest details [ 4 , 5 , 7 - 9 ].
During his career as a doctor of the emperor he poorly attended teachings of anatomy, he rarely did dissections in Padua and Pisa, as he spent most of the time attending royalty in the Netherlands and later in Spain. With no intention of returning to academic life soon he burned many of his books including the notes he had made during the years. After a while he regretted the incident and returned to his hometown - Brussels - with a fortune conquered by his services to the most important monarch of his time and it was then that his desire for dissections resurfaced.
There are few records of its activities after , but it is known that he participated in the treatment and autopsy of famous names like Ferrante Gonzaga of Mantua and Henri II of France [ 4 , 5 ]. His last publication was Anatomicarum Gabrielis Falloppii Observationum Examen dated May 24, , and since he moved with his wife to Spain, which stated to be a place where he had few opportunities to perform dissection and lived there until the event of his death.
The death of Vesalius is still controversial, different sources point that he would have been the target of the Inquisition and had to exchange his penalty for a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. At the time of his departure from Madrid to his pilgrimage he clearly had a desire to return to the intellectual and scientific environment of the University of Padua according to a letter sent to his great disciple Fallopius.
In return, in , was the victim of a shipwreck and his body found by a goldsmith and later buried on the Greek island of Zakynthos where a tomb was found presenting an epitaph written the following sentence: "The genius lives forever, everything else is mortal - Andreas Vesalius of Brussels" [ 4 , 5 ].
An important acknowledgment of the legacy of Vesalius in Cardiology was the tribute by the American College of Cardiology. It's logo created in is a modified heart figure designed by Andreas Vesalius in his Tabulae anatomicae sex. As it was chosen by Franz Maximilian Groedel, he aimed that this logo would have a strong identification with the scientific knowledge, a "learning seal" [ 10 , 11 ] Figure 4.
Seal of the American College of Cardiology Adapted [ 11 ].
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