Where was anesthetic invented?

Answer 1

Anesthetic was discovered in the US around 1844 in the form of nitrous oxide by Horace Wells, a dentist living in New Hampshire. However, in 1845 at a medical demonstration, the nitrous oxide didn't work, Wells was disgraced. On October 16, 1846, his associate William T. G. Morton was recognized for his use of ether as an anesthetic.

On November 4, 1847, the Scottish obstetrician James Young Simpson first used the anesthetic qualities of chloroform on two guests at his dinner party for entertainment. In fact, the name Anastasia was the name given to the first baby delivered while the mother was under the influence of chloroform. However, Dr. Wells started using chloroform as a recreational drug. After a 4-week binge, he became deranged and threw sulfuric acid at two prostitutes. He was placed in the Manhattan Detention Complex, commonly known as The Tombs, and committed suicide there after he realized what he had done.

In 1860 in Germany, cocaine was isolated and discovered to cause numbness. However, due to its addictive potential, analogues were soon created which did not cause any psychoactive symptoms.

In 1890, the topical anesthetic, benzocaine was first synthesized by the German chemist Eduard Ritsert (1859–1946), in the town of Eberbach.