Matthew Baillie Gairdner, The Royal Medical Society and the problem of the second heart sound

Nicolson, M. (2001) Matthew Baillie Gairdner, The Royal Medical Society and the problem of the second heart sound. Proceedings of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, 31, pp. 357-367.

Abstract

In 1830, Matthew Baille Gairdner (1808-88) was the first to propose that the second heart sound was produced by the closure of the semilunar valves. He proposed this theory, while a student at Edinburgh University, in an oral presentation to the Royal Medical Society (RMS). Gairdner (Figure 1) has been largely ignored by both nineteenth and twentieth century historians of cardiology. This paper presents an account of his life, his discovery and the scientific controversy to which he contributed, and argues that an appreciation of his work and that of his student colleagues should cause us to re-evaluate the significance of the RMS as a research forum in the early nineteenth century. Suggestions are made as to why his contribution to our understanding of the heart sounds has been neglected.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Nicolson, Professor Malcolm
• Authors: Nicolson, M.
• Subjects: R Medicine > R Medicine (General); H Social Sciences > HM Sociology
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Health & Wellbeing > Social Scientists working in Health and Wellbeing; College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Economic and Social History
• Journal Name: Proceedings of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh