Edoardo Bassini (1844-1924): father of modern-day hernia surgery.

According to Roman scripture, it was Celsus who attempted the first inguinal hernia repair in history during the first century A.D. His attempts were unsuccessful and resulted in an early recurrence of the hernia, which eventually led to the patient’s death.1 Over the next two millennia, little understanding was gained regarding the anatomy of the inguinal canal. It was only in the last 100 years that major advancements in herniorrhaphy were established, thanks in large part to the work of Edoardo Bassini, who revolutionized the surgical treatment of the inguinal hernia with a technique which has become the basis of modern-day herniorrhaphy

Christian Albert Theodor Billroth, M.D., founding father of abdominal surgery (1829-1894).

In the 1800s, the field of surgery was in its infancy, somewhat primitive and embryonic. The technical nature of surgery was the basis for the dividing line between the disciplines of surgery and internal medicine. Sterilization was not a common practice. Radical surgical resections and experimentation in medicine were shunned. With his boldness equaled only by his innovation and resourcefulness, Theodor Billroth would become a pioneer not only in the development of modern surgery, but also in the advancement of its cultural and historical significance

Emil Theodor Kocher, M.D., and his Nobel Prize (1841-1917).

Major contributions to the advancement of surgery occurred at the turn of the 20th century. Theodor Billroth was in the midst of revolutionizing abdominal surgery, whereas Louis Pasteur and Joseph Lister were making landmark strides in antisepsis, forever changing the foundations of surgical thinking. Undoubtedly, Theodor Kocher’s (Fig. 1) exposure to these and other giants had a major influence on his career and contributed to his success and ascent as the first, and one of only 10, surgeons ever to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine

Samuel D. Gross, M.D. (1805-1884): an innovator, even in death.

Dr. Samuel Gross\u27 contributions to the field of surgery are well known and range from numerous clinical advances to pioneering scholarship and professional activities. Dr. Gross was ceaselessly ambitious and even remarked in his autobiography that his ‘‘conviction has always been that is far better for a man to wear out than to rust out.’’1 It is through this frame of motivation that Dr. Gross lived his life