Question:

Ether was first publicly used as a surgical anaesthetic by:

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An American dentist who demonstrated ether in 1846.
Updated On: Jun 24, 2026
  • Priestley
  • Morton
  • Wells
  • Simpson
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The Correct Option is B

Solution and Explanation

Step 1: The first public demonstration of inhaled ether for surgical anaesthesia was given by William Thomas Green Morton, an American dentist, in 1846 at the Massachusetts General Hospital (the Ether Dome).

Step 2: This landmark event established ether as a practical surgical anaesthetic, so Morton is credited with its first public use.

Step 3: Why the others are wrong. Joseph Priestley discovered nitrous oxide gas. Horace Wells pioneered nitrous oxide for dental extraction, not ether. James Young Simpson introduced chloroform in obstetrics.

Step 4: Therefore the answer is Morton.
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