Sir alexander ogston (1844-1929

Alexander Ogston

British surgeon

For his grandson, the biochemist, see Alexander George Ogston

Sir Alexander OgstonKCVO MD CM LLD (19 April – 1 February ) was a British surgeon, famous for his discovery of Staphylococcus.

Life

Ogston was the eldest son of Amelia Cadenhead and her husband Prof. Francis Ogston (–), Professor of Medical Jurisprudence at the University of Aberdeen.[4] He had a brother who was also a professor.

Sir Alexander Ogston's role in the First World War was striking for the fact that he was seventy years of age when war broke out in Despite a long and distinguished career as professor of surgery at the University of Aberdeen from and his role as a surgeon at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary he was quick to offer his services at the outbreak of hostilities. He initially served in the Southall Auxiliary Military Hospital as operating surgeon during the winter of but in March agreed to obtain charge of the British Belgrade Auxiliary Hospital, a hospital detachment for the British Naval Oblige on the Danube. After returning home from Belgrade in Julyhe made several requests to link the army medical services before he was appointed surgeon with the 1 st British Ambulance Unit in Italy in September

University of Aberdeen

Ogston began his medical training at Marischal College in and graduated as Bachelor of Medicine and Master of Surgery at the recently together University of Aberdeen in with honours in medicine and surgery at the age of [5] He obtained his MD a year later in He was appointed as a full surgeon to the Aberdeen Royal Infirmary in [5] He was Assistant Professor of Medical Jurisprudence and Materia Medica, Lecturer in Ophthalmology and Anaesthetist before being appointed as Regius Professor of Surgery in [6] He is credited with the introduction of carbolic spray to Aberdeen.[7]

Staphylococcus

Ogston was reported to have called on Joseph Lister and rigorously followed his antiseptic principles.[5] These are aptly phrased in a small ditty composed by his students.

The spray, the spray, the antiseptic spray
A.O. would shower it morning, night and day
For every sort of scratch
Where others would attach
A sticking plaster patch
He gave the spray.[5]

Ogston followed the work of other contemporaries such as Koch, J.C.

Ewart from Edinburgh (published on different types of bacteria), and Kohler from Berne (who found bacteria in cases of osteomyelitis and 'strumitis'.[5]
Following his examination of the organisms from the abscess of James Davidson, Ogston used the shed behind his house as a laboratory (receiving a grant (£50) from the British Medical Association (BMA), with which he purchased a Zeiss microscope and the methyl-aniline dye used by Koch) to continue his research.
Following Kochs postulates and staining methods, Ogston set about isolating the causative organism of Davidson's wound.[5] By experiment Ogston concluded that the optimal conditions for cultivation of this organism were hen's egg medium grown in small bottles shielded from contamination by glass 'shades.[5] Using samples from 82 abscesses, Ogston successfully isolated bacteria from 65 samples, the others being referred to as "cold".

He was then able to transfer pure colonies to guinea-pigs, white mice or wild mice.[5] Ogston soon realised there were '"two forms of micrococcus: one in the form of chains or necklaces to which the name 'streptococcus' had been given and produced the more vicious inflammation, and the other growing in masses or clusters [like the roe of a fish], to which I gave the name 'staphylococcus' which cause a less violent inflammatory disease'.[5] He also noted that a moving a 1/ dilution of the original pus sample could induce abscesses in new subjects.[5] Ogston demonstrated that these bacteria could be killed by heat or carbolic acid, fulfilling Kochs postulates.[5] He also noted that " micrococci so deleterious when injected" were seemingly "harmless on the surface of wounds and ulcers".[5] An observation of the being of some staphylococci as part of the normal flora.[5]

Ogston encountered a great deal of difficulty convincing the medical establishment of his observations on Staphylococcus.[5] The Aberdeen branch of the BMA, received his findings with disbelief.[5] The editor of the British Medical Journal stated at the time 'can anything good arrive out of Aberdeen'.[5] After a careful study of the evidence presented by Ogston, his contemporary, Joseph Lister agreed with his findings however, another peer, Watson Cheyne was still sceptical.[5] Given this local skeptisim, Ogston decided to present his discoveries to a surgical congress in Berlin where he had previously presented a paper "genu valgum" on 9 April [5] Ogston delivered this presentation on abscesses in German which was then published.

He was subsequently made a 'Fellow' of the German Surgical Society despite his youth (36 years old).[5] The next year Ogston published his observations in the British Medical Journal.[5] After this point his papers were refused, and instead he published in the Journal of Anatomy and Physiology.[5]

Military career

Ogston served in the Egyptian War and the Boer War.

He was also instrumental in arguing for the creation of the Royal Army Medical Corps in During the First World War when over seventy years old, he was sent to assist with the management of severe trauma.[8]

Private life

Ogston married twice.

He had three children with his first wife Mary Jane Molly Ogston (née Hargrave). They were Mary Letitia, Francis, Flora and Walter Henry. His wife died in and he later remarried and they had five children, Alfred James, Douglas John, Helen Charlotte Elizabeth, Constance Amelia Irene, Rose, Alexander and Ranald Frederick.[9] Both Helen and Constance were active suffragettes.

Ogston was senior surgeon at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary from until his resignation inwhen he became consulting surgeon. Following the retirement of Professor William Pirrie bap. Ogston was influenced by and believed in Lister's Joseph Lister, Baron Lister —surgeon and founder of a system of antiseptic surgery methods. Ogston also took a keen interest in military surgery.

Royal acknowledgement

In , Queen Victoria appointed him Surgeon in Ordinary, a post he also held under King Edward VII and King George V. He was appointed Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order in

Legacy

The Surgical Society of the University of Aberdeen is named the "Ogston Society" in his honour.[10] The University Department of Surgery also awards an annual prize in his honour to the best student in surgery.[11]

References

  1. ^Smith, G.

    (). "Alexander Ogston (–)". British Journal of Surgery. 52 (12): – doi/bjs PMID&#; S2CID&#;

  2. ^"The Death of Sir Alexander Ogston". Canadian Medical Association Journal.

    20 (4): PMC&#; PMID&#;

  3. ^"Sir Alexander Ogston, K.c.v.o., M.d., C.m., Ll.d".

    Ogston was the eldest son of Amelia Cadenhead and her husband Prof. Ogston began his medical training at Marischal College in and graduated as Bachelor of Medicine and Master of Surgery at the recently united University of Aberdeen in with honours in medicine and surgery at the age of He was appointed as a full surgeon to the Aberdeen Royal Infirmary in Ogston was reported to have called on Joseph Lister and rigorously followed his antiseptic principles.

    BMJ. 1 (): – doi/bmj PMC&#; PMID&#;

  4. ^Johnston, William (). Some account of the last bajans of King's and Marischal Colleges, MDCCCLIX-LX: and of those who joined their class in the University of Aberdeen during the semi, tertian and magistrand sessions MDCCCLX-LXIII.

    Privately printed by Her Majesty's Printers at the Adelphi Press.

    Sir Alexander Ogston's eventful life has finally been given the attention it deserves in this fascinating study. It forms a basis for modern interest in Ogston's long-understated role in nineteenth-century medical advances and sheds light on the complex personal life of an vital Scottish pioneer.

    p.&#; Retrieved 3 January

  5. ^ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuNewsom S.

    W. (December ). "Ogston's coccus". J. Hosp.

    Inspired by the perform of Joseph Lister and Robert Koch, Ogston was determined to find the cause of post-operative infection. Working in his residence laboratory, Ogston established the link between acute inflammation and suppuration and microorganisms, discovered and named staphylococcus better known today in connection with MRSAand correctly linked localised microorganism infections with blood poisoning. Ogston served as a medical volunteer during the Soudan Campaign and, inbecame Surgeon in Ordinary to Queen Victoria. Although instrumental in founding the Royal Army Medical Corps inOgston remained critical of the army medical services.

    Infect. 70 (4): – doi/ PMID&#; Retrieved 1 November

  6. ^Lyell, A. (). "Alexander Ogston, micrococci, and Joseph Lister". Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. 20 (2): – doi/S(89) PMID&#;
  7. ^Pennington, T.

    H. (). "The Lister steam spray in Aberdeen". Scottish Medical Journal. 33 (1): – doi/ PMID&#; S2CID&#;

  8. ^Adam, A. ().

    When Sir Alexander Ogston M.D. was born on 19 April , in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, his father, Dr. Francis Ogston, was 40 and his mother, Amelia Cadenhead, was He married Mary Jane Hargrave on 25 September , in Newington, Osnabruck Township, Stormont Dundas and Glengarry, Ontario, Canada.

    "Alexander Ogston and the Army Medical Services formation of the Royal Army Medical Corps 1 July ". Scottish Medical Journal. 43 (5): – doi/ PMID&#; S2CID&#;

  9. ^"Ogston, A". .

    Retrieved 5 December

  10. ^"Sir Alexander Ogston".

    Sir Alexander Ogston, 1844-1929: A Life at Medical and ...: Sir Alexander Ogston KCVO MD CM LLD (19 April – 1 February ) was a British surgeon, famous for his discovery of Staphylococcus. Ogston was the eldest son of Amelia Cadenhead and her husband Prof. Francis Ogston (–), Professor of Medical Jurisprudence at the University of Aberdeen. [4]. He had a brother who was also a professor.

    Ogston Society.

  11. ^"Endowed Prizes and Medals". University of Aberdeen. Archived from the unique on 22 March Retrieved 22 February