ABSTRACT
Like many other surgical subspecialties, the field of thoracic surgery evolved through general surgeons developing a particular interest in treating diseases of the chest. Although specialized tools and instruments designed for chest surgery had been utilized for many years, it was the advent of positive pressure ventilation and anesthesia in the late 19th century that allowed surgeons to contemplate complex open chest surgeries. Facing the challenges of wartime thoracic injuries in the early 20th century, as well as dealing with the devastating effects of tuberculosis in the preantibiotic era, allowed thoracic surgery to emerge as a legitimate and important subspecialty. Over the ensuing decades, prior to the arrival of open heart surgery nearly 50 years ago, thoracic surgeons focused primarily on correcting infectious diseases and malignancies of the lungs and chest wall.
