{"id":9339,"date":"2026-04-05T09:00:19","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T07:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.marquis.rs\/en\/?p=9339"},"modified":"2026-04-13T17:41:32","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T15:41:32","slug":"lord-lister-and-the-first-chemical-air-disinfection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.marquis.rs\/en\/blog\/lord-lister-and-the-first-chemical-air-disinfection\/","title":{"rendered":"Lord Lister and the First Chemical Air Disinfection"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today, air quality in hospitals and other controlled environments is defined by international standards. These standards prescribe cleanliness classes and the technical conditions required to achieve them. Most often, we talk about air filtration, while chemical air disinfection is mentioned less frequently.<\/p>\n

However, other approaches exist, such as chemical and thermal air disinfection.<\/p>\n

What Were Surgical Conditions Like in the Mid-19th Century?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In the mid-19th century, surgical procedures looked nothing like they do today.<\/p>\n

Patients lay on simple beds, far from the standards we now take for granted. Surgeons operated in their everyday clothes. They wore no gowns, let alone gloves or masks.<\/p>\n

Modern dressings did not exist.<\/p>\n

Operating rooms had wooden platforms surrounded by seating areas. The audience often consisted of medical students observing procedures up close.<\/p>\n

In such conditions, infections were not the exception. They were frequent and often fatal.<\/p>\n

The Beginning of Understanding the Problem<\/strong><\/h2>\n

At that time, medicine began to change direction.<\/p>\n

Ignaz Semmelweis demonstrated that hand hygiene could drastically reduce mortality. At the same time, Louis Pasteur proved that microorganisms cause decay and disease.<\/p>\n

SEE ALSO: Ignaz Semmelweis \u2013 The Savior of Mothers and Newborns<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

These insights paved the way for a new way of thinking. Joseph Lister was the first to connect these ideas and apply them to surgery.<\/p>\n

Who Was Joseph Lister?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Joseph Lister, known as Lord Lister, was born on April 5, 1827, in England, into a family of scientists. His father was a pioneer in improving the microscope. So, Lister grew up in a stimulating scientific environment.<\/p>\n

As a surgeon in Glasgow, Lister was the first to connect new knowledge about microorganisms with medical practice and to develop the principles of antiseptic surgery. His work marked a turning point in medicine.<\/p>\n

He showed that hygiene, including air control, can determine treatment outcomes.<\/p>\n

What Was the First Attempt at Air Disinfection?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Joseph Lister introduced the use of carbolic acid (phenol) to disinfect wounds, instruments, and surgeons\u2019 hands.<\/p>\n

But what about air?<\/p>\n

Unlike modern systems that rely on filtration and physical separation of particles and microorganisms, his approach relied on chemical disinfection of the air. In 1867, Lord Lister began using a spray device to disperse carbolic acid into the air of the operating room, more precisely, the operating theater. This marked the first recorded attempt in history to maintain hospital air cleanliness through chemical disinfection.<\/p>\n

For the first time, air was recognized as a factor that could determine the outcome of treatment.<\/p>\n

The Boy Who Changed the Course of Surgery<\/strong><\/h2>\n

One of the first patients in the Glasgow hospital where Lister applied his method was an eleven-year-old boy with a severe open leg fracture. At the time, such an injury almost certainly led to amputation and carried a high risk of death.<\/p>\n

Lister applied his method in full:<\/p>\n