Complete Record - Heirs of Hippocrates No. 1909

GEORGE WILLIAM BALFOUR (1823-1903) Clinical lectures on diseases of the heart and aorta. J. & A. Churchill 1876 xvi, 428, 23 [1] pp., illus., plate (front.). 22.4 cm.

Balfour was a greatly respected internist of Edinburgh who served as the third editor of the Edinburgh medical journal and lectured on medicine at the Edinburgh Medical School. This collection of his lectures is an excellent example of his skill in physical diagnosis, recording of autopsy observations, and understanding of the normal and pathological conditions of the heart, valves, and aorta. Balfour's test to determine variations in pulsation between any two parts of the underlying heart and to note any heart motion in cases of suspected cardiac arrest is described in the text. Pellets of beeswax containing bristles afixed with small paper flags are stuck to the surface of the chest allowing the examiner to detect any movement of the heart.

Cited references: Garrison-Morton 2779; Waller 641 (2nd ed., 1882)

Gift of John Martin, M.D.