A cylindrical cardboard box with a lid containing a roll of recording paper.
Number Of Parts
1
Provenance
Acquired from the Academy of Medicine; source: Mr. Austin, administrator, Dept. of Pathology, Banting Institute; belonged to Dr. O. Klotz, chairman of the pathology labs at Banting Institute during the 1930s.
On top of box lid: "Fabrik für wissenshaftliche chronometrie // A.G. James Jaquet // Basel (Schweiz) // Sphygmotonographe, Sphygmocardiographe, // Sphygmochronographe, // Graphische Chronometer, // Chronoscope. // etc. // und Präzisionsmechanik"; translated: "Scientific chronometry factory A.G. James Jaquet Basel (Schweiz) Sphygmotonographe, Sphygmocardiographe, Sphygmochronographe, Graphical chronometer, chronoscope, etc. and precision mechanics"
Blood pressure is measured and recorded using a sphygmograph. It is strapped to the wrist. The pulse beat is transmitted to a lever which records it on smoked paper. The first efficient sphygmograph was designed by Étienne-Jules Marey (1830-1904) in 1863. This example belonged to Dr Robert Ellis Dudgeon (1820-1904). He was a prominent figure in homeopathy. Dudgeon also made his own changes to Marey’s original design. It was made by instrument maker J. Gauter in 1876. In the late 1800s, physiology teachers used sphygmographs to visually demonstrate blood pressure. Instruments such as this were also valuable diagnostic aids. They were the predecessor of the modern arm cuffs physicians now use to measure blood pressure.