Hunter

HUNTER, John (John Hunter; more correctly Hunter, 1728-93), one of the foremost English surgeons and anatomists, younger brother of William Hunter. John Hunter, at 20 years old, became an assistant to William Hunter, demonstrating great aptitude for dissection and then began to practice surgery, and in 1756 he obtained the position of surgeon at "St. George's Hospital" (later served as a naval physician). In 1767, Hunter became a member of the "Royal Society", later a member of the "College of Surgeons" and chief inspector of hospitals. Hunter founded a world-renowned museum with 14,000 specimens, mostly prepared by himself. The scope of Hunter's research was very extensive: besides human anatomy, he worked in the fields of comparative anatomy, physiology, embryology, geology, botany and especially experimental pathology. Hunter substantiated the doctrine of "descensus testiculorum (ovariorum)" (descent of the testicle) and of congenital hernias. He pointed out that vesiculae seminales (seminal vesicles) represent a secretory organ, etc. With his unfortunate experience of inoculating "gonorrheal" pus from the urethra, which resulted in the development of a hard chancre, Hunter retarded the progress of venereology for half a century, supposedly experimentally establishing the unity of venereal poison. Hunter's most important works: "Natural history of the human teeth" (v. I-II, London, 1771-78, the first scientific odontology); "Treatise on the venereal disease" (London, 1786); after Hunter's death was published: "Treatise on the blood, inflammation and gunshot wounds" (London, 1794). A collection of Hunter's works was published by Palmer (v. I-IV, L., 1835) and translated into German and French. Hunter is credited with the terms "gubernaculum Hunteri (testis)", "canalis adductorius Hunteri".

HUNTER, William (more correctly Hunter) (William Hunter, 1718-1783), outstanding English physician and anatomist, student of Edinburgh professor of anatomy Monroe and London professor Douglas. In 1746, Hunter obtained a professorship at the "Society of Navy Surgeons", in 1768 Hunter became professor of anatomy at the newly established "Academy of Arts". Hunter was one of the most versatile, educated, and talented physician-biologists of his time. With extraordinary zeal, he studied anatomy, which he considered the foundation of medicine and knowledge of which was just as necessary for a physician as familiarity with geometry for an astronomer. Hunter created the richest museum (later transferred to Glasgow University), on which he spent about 100,000 pounds sterling of his own funds; at his own expense, he arranged anatomical theaters, where he gave lectures and worked with his students, among whom should be mentioned Ch. Bell and W. Cruikshank (Ch. Bell, W. Cruikshank). Hunter so meticulously prepared his scientific works that he spent, for example, 20 years completing his classic work, published simultaneously in Latin and English: "Anatomia uteri humani gravidi tabulis illustrata" (Birmingham-London, 1774-95). He is credited with the term "decidua". Among his other numerous works should be mentioned "Medical commentaries" (L., 1762-64); "On the structure and diseases of the articulating cartilages" (L., 1743).