Early Uses of Hypnosis as Surgical Anesthesia

Among the numerous applications of hypnosis over the centuries have been its uses as surgical anesthesia and analgesia. Although there are unverified reports of earlier surgery with hypnosis in France, the first documented case took place on April 12, 1829, when a mastectomy was performed by Jules Cloquet in Paris. Hypnotic anesthesia was initially applied in the United States on June 30, 1836, in a case of dental surgery performed by a Dr. Harwood in Boston. Two years later, hypnoanesthesia began to be used in England in 1838 when a seton was inserted into a patient's neck, probably by John Elliotson. The modality proved to be useful in numerous instances during a period of medical history when surgery was a distinct risk and frequently a death sentence for the patient.