John Benjamin Murphy

A mechanical device designed for intestinal anastomosis, known as Murphy’s button, emerged from experiments conducted in a barn behind the home of John Benjamin Murphy. This innovation facilitated a sutureless connection of the gallbladder to the duodenum, serving as a functional precursor to contemporary stapling instruments utilized throughout the global surgical profession during the twentieth century.

Clinical Training and Early Practice

Born in 1857 in Appleton, Wisconsin, Murphy graduated from Rush Medical College in 1879. Following an eighteen-month residency at Cook County Hospital, he expanded his medical expertise from 1882 to 1884 by studying in Vienna, Munich, Berlin, and Heidelberg. His time in Vienna under Theodor Billroth proved particularly influential. Upon returning to the United States, he established a general practice and quickly shifted his focus toward abdominal surgery.

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Surgical Innovation and Eponyms

Murphy was a persistent advocate for early surgical intervention in cases of appendicitis, a stance that initially encountered significant professional skepticism. He eventually secured his position as an authority by presenting clinical data from 250 cases. His technical contributions are preserved in numerous clinical eponyms, including Murphy’s sign for acute cholecystitis, the Murphy drip for fluid administration in peritonitis, and the Murphy-Lane bone skid. In 1896, he achieved the first successful union of a femoral artery damaged by gunfire, and in 1898, he performed the first induced pneumothorax in the United States to treat pulmonary tuberculosis.

Academic Influence and Public Events

From 1908 until 1916, Murphy held faculty appointments at Northwestern University Medical School and served as surgeon-in-chief at Mercy Hospital. He gained a global reputation for his "wet clinics," where he performed live surgeries while lecturing to visiting physicians. These demonstrations were transcribed and published, eventually evolving into the Surgical Clinics of North America. His career also intersected with significant public events; he provided emergency medical care to approximately 30 victims of the 1886 Haymarket Affair and later treated Theodore Roosevelt following an assassination attempt in 1912.

Final Years and Professional Recognition

Murphy served as President of the American Medical Association from 1911 to 1912. His honors included the Laetare Medal in 1902 and an honorary fellowship from the Royal College of Surgeons in 1913, alongside the title of Knight of the Order of St. Gregory the Great. He suffered from chronic angina pectoris for years and died of heart disease at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island in 1916. He was buried at Calvary Cemetery, having accurately predicted that his own autopsy would reveal aortic plaques.