1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:01,920 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of I 2 00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:07,560 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hi everyone, I'm Eves and welcome to This 3 00:00:07,680 --> 00:00:10,840 Speaker 1: Day in History Class, a podcast where we rip out 4 00:00:10,840 --> 00:00:24,000 Speaker 1: a page from the history books. Every day. Today is January. 5 00:00:24,720 --> 00:00:30,280 Speaker 1: The day was January see Elizabeth Bennett became the first 6 00:00:30,400 --> 00:00:33,720 Speaker 1: documented person in the US to successfully give birth to 7 00:00:33,760 --> 00:00:37,519 Speaker 1: a child by ces arian section, also known as C section. 8 00:00:38,640 --> 00:00:41,960 Speaker 1: The origins of the cesian section aren't completely clear, but 9 00:00:42,120 --> 00:00:45,800 Speaker 1: it is known to be an old operation. The practice 10 00:00:45,800 --> 00:00:48,480 Speaker 1: of cutting open the uterus to deliver a baby dates 11 00:00:48,520 --> 00:00:55,280 Speaker 1: back thousands of years. References to the procedure appear in Hindu, Egyptian, Greek, Roman, 12 00:00:55,360 --> 00:00:58,720 Speaker 1: and Chinese folklore and mythology, as well as that of 13 00:00:58,760 --> 00:01:03,840 Speaker 1: other cultures. Some scholars note laws that required abdominal delivery 14 00:01:03,880 --> 00:01:06,800 Speaker 1: from a dead parent that date back to three thousand BC. 15 00:01:08,280 --> 00:01:10,240 Speaker 1: The goal was usually to get the baby when the 16 00:01:10,280 --> 00:01:13,119 Speaker 1: parent was dying or dead, so that the child could 17 00:01:13,160 --> 00:01:17,199 Speaker 1: be saved or buried separately from the parents. In these 18 00:01:17,240 --> 00:01:21,120 Speaker 1: early years, the procedure was usually a last resort. The 19 00:01:21,200 --> 00:01:24,520 Speaker 1: point was not to save the parents life. The operation 20 00:01:24,680 --> 00:01:28,280 Speaker 1: was associated with high rates of morbidity and mortality for 21 00:01:28,319 --> 00:01:32,280 Speaker 1: the birthing parents. There are recorded cases of attempts to 22 00:01:32,360 --> 00:01:35,960 Speaker 1: save the parent. In the sixteenth century, a swissman named 23 00:01:36,000 --> 00:01:40,200 Speaker 1: Yakob Nwfer helped his wife deliver a baby abdominantly after 24 00:01:40,240 --> 00:01:44,320 Speaker 1: she spent days in labor. The mother lived and reportedly 25 00:01:44,400 --> 00:01:47,760 Speaker 1: went on to give birth to more children. That said, 26 00:01:47,800 --> 00:01:50,800 Speaker 1: the story of this delivery was published decades after it 27 00:01:50,880 --> 00:01:56,280 Speaker 1: supposedly happened, so it's authenticity is questionable. The origins of 28 00:01:56,320 --> 00:02:00,200 Speaker 1: the term Scerian section are also unclear. Julius c There 29 00:02:00,200 --> 00:02:03,400 Speaker 1: has been cited as being borne by and named after 30 00:02:03,440 --> 00:02:07,760 Speaker 1: the Cisterian section, but this is likely not true. Caesar's 31 00:02:07,800 --> 00:02:10,640 Speaker 1: mother survived his birth, and there are no records of 32 00:02:10,720 --> 00:02:15,200 Speaker 1: parents surviving after surgical delivery During this time. There was 33 00:02:15,240 --> 00:02:19,000 Speaker 1: also a legend about another Caesar, an ancestor, who was 34 00:02:19,080 --> 00:02:22,200 Speaker 1: born by c section, which may have caused some of 35 00:02:22,240 --> 00:02:27,120 Speaker 1: the confusion. Either way. More plausible theories linked the name 36 00:02:27,200 --> 00:02:30,600 Speaker 1: Csarian section to the Latin word kai dare, which means 37 00:02:30,720 --> 00:02:34,520 Speaker 1: to cut. Others suggests that the procedures name came from 38 00:02:34,520 --> 00:02:38,440 Speaker 1: the licks cisaria, a Roman law that required the fetus 39 00:02:38,480 --> 00:02:41,200 Speaker 1: to be removed from the uterus if a pregnant parent 40 00:02:41,320 --> 00:02:45,440 Speaker 1: died The term section was used in association with the 41 00:02:45,520 --> 00:02:49,840 Speaker 1: procedure before French surgeon Jacques Guiamo used it in his 42 00:02:50,919 --> 00:02:55,200 Speaker 1: book on Midwifery, but the term cycerian operation was more 43 00:02:55,280 --> 00:02:58,639 Speaker 1: commonly used until usage of cesarian section picked up in 44 00:02:58,680 --> 00:03:03,320 Speaker 1: the twentieth century. Back to the operation itself, physicians began 45 00:03:03,400 --> 00:03:06,680 Speaker 1: performing c sections on living people and trying to save 46 00:03:06,720 --> 00:03:10,400 Speaker 1: the child and the parent in the sixteenth century, but 47 00:03:10,480 --> 00:03:14,200 Speaker 1: it was still risky and could cause shots, sepsis, hemorrhage, 48 00:03:14,200 --> 00:03:18,519 Speaker 1: and other complications that were often fatal. Elizabeth Bennett is 49 00:03:18,560 --> 00:03:21,680 Speaker 1: cited as the first documented woman in the US to 50 00:03:21,760 --> 00:03:25,280 Speaker 1: give birth by C section and survive. She went through 51 00:03:25,320 --> 00:03:28,240 Speaker 1: a prolonged labor and wanted a C section, but her 52 00:03:28,320 --> 00:03:32,760 Speaker 1: doctor refused, so her husband, Jesse Bennett, performed the surgery 53 00:03:32,840 --> 00:03:35,840 Speaker 1: himself in their home after putting her to sleep with 54 00:03:35,840 --> 00:03:41,880 Speaker 1: a tincture of opium called Latnum. Better anesthetic and surgical techniques, 55 00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:46,080 Speaker 1: as well as the introduction of antibiotics and blood transfusions, 56 00:03:46,240 --> 00:03:50,040 Speaker 1: lad to say for c sections, the procedure became common 57 00:03:50,080 --> 00:03:54,680 Speaker 1: in the nineteen forties. Today, it's performed when vaginal delivery 58 00:03:54,760 --> 00:03:58,520 Speaker 1: is considered too dangerous for the parent or fetus. The 59 00:03:58,600 --> 00:04:02,280 Speaker 1: surgery still comes with risks, and there's debate over the 60 00:04:02,360 --> 00:04:06,400 Speaker 1: high rate of C sections in some countries. I'm Eves 61 00:04:06,440 --> 00:04:08,920 Speaker 1: Jeff Coote and hopefully you know a little more about 62 00:04:09,000 --> 00:04:12,600 Speaker 1: history today than you did yesterday. Give us a shout 63 00:04:12,720 --> 00:04:16,320 Speaker 1: or a share on social media at t D I 64 00:04:16,800 --> 00:04:20,640 Speaker 1: h C Podcast. If you prefer something a little bit 65 00:04:20,680 --> 00:04:23,640 Speaker 1: more formal, then you can write us at this Day 66 00:04:23,680 --> 00:04:27,520 Speaker 1: at I heart media dot com. I truly hope you 67 00:04:27,640 --> 00:04:33,440 Speaker 1: enjoyed today's show. We'll be back tomorrow with another episode. 68 00:04:34,720 --> 00:04:36,760 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the I 69 00:04:36,800 --> 00:04:39,440 Speaker 1: Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to 70 00:04:39,480 --> 00:04:40,279 Speaker 1: your favorite shows.