Murphy, John Benjamin

SUBJECT AREA: Medical technology

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b. 21 December 1857 Appleton, Wisconsin, USA

d. 11 August 1916 Mackinac, Michigan, USA

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American surgeon, pioneer of intestinal anastomosis and proponent of joint replacement.

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Murphy qualified in 1879 at Rush Medical College. After postgraduate study in Vienna, he returned to Chicago and was appointed Professor of Surgery at Northwestern University. He pioneered surgical techniques in the pneumothoracic, biliary and gastrointestinal systems with the invention of the Murphy "button" for intestinal anastomosis. He also originated a procedure for the replacement of infected joints utilizing a living graft of fascial tissue. He was described by W.J. Mayo as "the surgical genius of our century".

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Principal Honours and Distinctions

Knight Commander of the Order of St Gregory 1910. Hon. Fellow, Royal College of Surgeons 1913. Laetare Medal, Notre Dame University 1902.

Bibliography

1897, "Resection of arteries and veins injured in continuity", Medical Record, New York.

Further Reading

Kelly \& Burrage, 1928, The Surgical Clinics of John B.Murphy MD at Mercy Hospital, Chicago.

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