1734

Posthumous publication of William Giffard’s (London) Cases in Midwifery, 225 dated cases between 1725 and 1731, characterized by his use of midwifery forceps (his “Extractor”) for obstructed births by the head from 1728 to 1731, including use of single blade of the forceps as a vectis (A. Wilson, 91-96). Even in his early (1728) cases with forceps, most (around 75%) were delivered alive and the median delay before Giffard was called was only 48 hours as opposed to the 3-4 days characteristic of traditional obstetric surgery. Between 1728 and 1731, the median delay fell to 36 hours and the proportion of stillbirths dropped from 1-in-4 to 1-in-10 (97-98).