Professor Erik Romanovich Hesse (1883–1938) in the history of Russian surgery and transfusiology

An outstanding surgeon and scientist, recognized in European countries, one of the founders of domestic hemotransfusiology, founder and director of the Research Institute of Blood Transfusion in Leningrad, creator of a large school of surgeons and transfusiologists in the USSR, editor-in-chief of the journal «Bulletin of Surgery named after I. I. Grekov» (1934–1937), Professor Eric Romanovich Hesse was born on July 28 (old style) 1883 in the city of Vyborg in a German family of a priest. Eric Hesse received an excellent secondary education at the Annenschule Gymnasium No. 1 in St. Petersburg. In 1902, he entered the Imperial University of Dorpat, a year later, he continued his education at the Imperial Military Medical Academy (1903–1905), and then, studied at the University of Kцnigsberg and the University of Tьbingen. After graduating from the latter in 1907, he received a medical degree and returned to St. Petersburg. For many years, Erik Romanovich worked at the Obukhov Hospital under the supervision of professors G. F. Zeidler and I. I. Grekov. In 1918, he was appointed chief physician of the Holy Trinity Community of Sisters of Mercy Hospital and simultaneously head of the surgical department. In 1920, he defended his doctoral dissertation «Clinic of the saphenofemoral anastomosis in varicose veins of the lower extremities and the remote results of this operation». In 1925, E. R. Hesse was elected head of the general surgery department at the State Institute of Medical Knowledge (GIMZ, now the North-Western State Medical University named after I. I. Mechnikov) and received the academic title of Professor. Concurrently, for 9 years, he provided scientific leadership to the neurosurgery department at the V. M. Bekhterev Psychoneurological Institute. In 1934, Erik Romanovich was elected head of the 1st surgery department at GIMZ and also began to serve as editor-in-chief of the journal «Bulletin of Surgery and Border Regions». Professor E. R. Hesse made a huge contribution to the development of domestic surgery and transfusiology, to the improvement of training of students of medical institutes and postgraduate education of surgeons. He was the author and editor of the first two-volume manual in the country «General Surgery» (1928), the first Soviet three-volume manual «Special Surgery» (1937), the editor of the four-volume manual «Errors, dangers and unforeseen complications in the treatment of surgical diseases» (1936–1937). In 1931, E. R. Hesse organized the first blood transfusion station in Leningrad. In 1932, it was reorganized into the Leningrad Institute of Blood Transfusion, headed by Erik Romanovich. He made a very large contribution to the organization of the network of blood service institutions in Russia, the substantiation of the principles of blood donation, the introduction of component transfusion therapy, the development of preventive measures and approaches to the treatment of post-transfusion complications. Eric Romanovich was the author and co-author of 210 scientific and practical works on 11 surgical disciplines and transfusiology in domestic and foreign publications. Professor E. R. Hesse died tragically on November 26, 1938 in Leningrad.