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When blood is exposed to air, it clots. Heparin allows the blood to come in direct contact with air without clotting.
Medication errors are more common among seriously ill patients than with those with minor conditions.
The first documented use of surgical anesthesia in the United States was in Connecticut in 1844.
It is widely believed that giving a daily oral dose of aspirin to heart attack patients improves their chances of survival because the aspirin blocks the formation of new blood clots.
It is believed that the Incas used anesthesia. Evidence supports the theory that shamans chewed cocoa leaves and drilled holes into the heads of patients (letting evil spirits escape), spitting into the wounds they made. The mixture of cocaine, saliva, and resin numbed the site enough to allow hours of drilling.