ABSTRACT
Shock was recognized by Hippocrates and his contemporaries as a “post-traumatic syndrome” occurring in those who had sustained major injuries. The origins of the word “shock” traces back to the French word choc meaning violent attack, and was first used by Le Dran in 1737 in his text, “A treatise on reflections drawn from practice on gunshot wounds” (1). The term “shock” entered into more common usage after Edwin Morris published his book “A practical treatise on shock after operations and injuries” in 1867 (2).
