1744-1795

French surgeon who improved techniques for treating fractures, dislocations, and aneurysms. Apprenticed to a barber-surgeon, he never earned a degree. His skill alone made his career. Together with François Chopart he originated urological surgery. They were the first to regard the entire genito-urinary system as a unified, separate entity. In 1791 Desault founded the world's first surgical periodical, Journal de chirurgie. He was a popular lecturer and teacher. Among his students was the anatomist Marie François Xavier Bichat.