Edmond Eger Papers, 1960-1995

Printable guide [HTML]
Request items

Summary

Creators:
Ahearn, Morgen and Eger, Edmond
Abstract:
Edmond Eger was influential in the development of modern inhaled anesthetics. He introduced the concept of "MAC" for the minimum alveolar concentration of anesthetic required to prevent movement in patients in response to surgery, which remains the standard dosage used by anesthesiologists. His papers include laboratory notebooks, patient files, research files, photographs, films, and certificates.
Extent:
30.375 Linear Feet (24 cartons, 3 boxes)
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Edmond Eger Papers, MSS 2017-45. Archives and Special Collections, University of California, San Francisco.

Background

Scope and content:

The collections includes laboratory notebooks, patient files, research files, photographs, films, and certificates.

Biographical / historical:

Edmond I. Eger II was born in Chicago in 1930 and died from pancreatic cancer at 86 at his home in California. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in 1951 from Roosevelt University in Chicago, and his MD in 1955 from Northwestern University Medical School, Chicago. From 1958 to 1960, he served as the Chief of the Anesthesia and Operative section at the US Army Hospital in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. In 1960 he joined the faculty at UCSF.

Throughout his career, Dr. Eger published more than 500 peer-reviews publications, and worked as an author, co-author, or co-editor, on seven books. He recieved multiple awards for his research and leadership roles in anesthesia, including the Distinguished Service Award and the Excellence in Research Award from the American Society of Anesthesiology, and is an Elected Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons, London.

Dr. Eger worked with Dr. Giles Merkel, Dr. Lawrence Saidman and other anesthesiologists at the University of California, San Francisco to find safer ways to administer anesthesia. In 1965, they introduced the MAC (minimum alveolar concentration) concept, which soon became the standard measure of potency for anesthetic gases. This technique has made the administering of anesthesia much safer and has saved millions of lives. Dr. Eger also identified new drugs such as isoflurane, sevoflurane and desflurane, which are widely used in general inhaled anesthetics.

Acquisition information:
This collection was donated to the UCSF Archives and Special Collections by Morgen Ahearn in 2016. Additional materials were transferred from Administrative Support, Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Care by Frida Stone in 2022.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

Collection is open for research. The UCSF Archives and Special Collections policy places access restrictions on material with privacy issues for a specific time period from the date of creation. Access to records that contain personal and confidential information about an individual or individuals is restricted for 75 years from date of creation or until the death of the individual mentioned in the records, whichever is longer. Access to medical records is restricted for 100 years from the latest date of the materials in those files. Restrictions are noted at the series level. This collection will be reviewed for sensitive content upon request. Contact the UCSF Archivist for information on access to these files.

Terms of access:

Some materials in these collections may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). In addition, the reproduction of some materials may be restricted by terms of the University of California gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions, privacy and publicity rights, licensing, and trademarks. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Edmond Eger Papers, MSS 2017-45. Archives and Special Collections, University of California, San Francisco.

Location of this collection:
UCSF Library & CKM Archives and Special Collections, 530 Parnassus Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94143-0840, US