Ernst Blasius

Ernst Carl Friedrich Blasius was a German surgeon who lived from 1802 to 1875. Born in Berlin, he studied at the medical-surgical institute there and graduated in 1823 with a thesis on the formation of the intestinal tract in mammalian embryos. After several years of military medical service he moved to the University of Halle, where he became an associate professor in 1829 and, from 1831, director of the university hospital. He was made a full professor in 1834 and directed the surgical and ophthalmological clinic until he gave up clinical work in 1867 for reasons of health, when his former assistant Richard von Volkmann took over the position. Blasius is remembered for developing his own operative techniques in reconstructive surgery, for his work on joint dislocations, and for research contributions on blood transfusion.