Gaston Labat

Gaston Labat was born in 1876 in Victoria, Mahé Island in the Seychelles to French parents, Siméon and Marie Labat, who had originally emigrated from Mauritius. Though his birth was officially registered in January 1877, Labat was born in December 1876.

His father, a trader, had relocated to the Seychelles to establish a business. Gaston was the eldest of three children, followed by two younger sisters. The family later returned to Mauritius after Siméon's death in a shipwreck, where Labat spent much of his childhood and early education.{{Cite journal |last=Brown |first=David L. |last2=Winnie |first2=Alon P. |date=1992-09-01 |title=Biography of Louis Gaston Labat, M.D. |url=https://rapm.bmj.com/content/17/5/249 |journal=Regional Anesthesia: The Journal of Neural Blockade in Obstetrics, Surgery, & Pain Control |language=en |volume=17 |issue=5 |pages=249–262 |doi=10.1136/rapm-00115550-199217050-00002 |issn=0146-521X}}

Gaston Labat received his medical training at the Royal College of Mauritius (now Royal College Curepipe). While in Mauritius, Labat worked in his brother-in-law's pharmacy, gaining experience with medicinal compounds and patient care. This early exposure to pharmaceuticals contributed to his later medical career.

Gaston Labat continued his studies in France, first at the University of Montpellier and then at the University of Paris, where he trained under surgeon Victor Pauchet.

In 1920, while observing Victor Pauchet’s surgical techniques in Paris, Charles Horace Mayo was impressed by Labat's regional anesthesia methods and invited him to join the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.{{Cite journal |last=Orkaby |first=Asher |last2=Desai |first2=Sukumar |date=2024-02-06 |title=Gaston Labat, the Mayo Clinic, and the Introduction of Regional Anesthesia to the United States |url=https://brill.com/view/journals/ehmh/81/1/article-p45_003.xml |journal=European Journal for the History of Medicine and Health |volume=81 |issue=1 |pages=45–73 |doi=10.1163/26667711-20240001 |issn=2666-7703}} There, he authored the influential textbook Regional Anesthesia: Its Technic and Clinical Application which was published in 1922. The book, partly based on Pauchet's work, became the standard reference for decades.{{Cite journal |last=Côté |first=Annie V. |last2=Vachon |first2=Claude A. |last3=Horlocker |first3=Terese T. |last4=Bacon |first4=Douglas R. |date=April 2003 |title=From Victor Pauchet to Gaston Labat: the transformation of regional anesthesia from a surgeon's practice to the physician anesthesiologist |url=https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12651684 |journal=Anesthesia and Analgesia |volume=96 |issue=4 |pages=1193–1200 |doi=10.1213/01.ANE.0000049823.67729.1D |issn=0003-2999 |pmid=12651684}}{{Cite journal |last=Vachon |first=Claude A. |last2=Bacon |first2=Douglas R. |last3=Rose |first3=Steven H. |date=October 2008 |title=Gaston Labat's Regional Anesthesia: the missing years |url=https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18806053 |journal=Anesthesia and Analgesia |volume=107 |issue=4 |pages=1371–1375 |doi=10.1213/ane.0b013e3181838d56 |issn=1526-7598 |pmid=18806053}}

He later moved to New York, co-founding the American Society of Regional Anesthesia (1923).{{Cite journal |last=Neal |first=Joseph M. |date=2006-01-01 |title=30 Plus Years — An Anniversary Celebration of ASRA and Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine |url=https://rapm.bmj.com/content/31/1/4 |journal=Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine |language=en |volume=31 |issue=1 |pages=4–5 |doi=10.1016/j.rapm.2005.11.009 |issn=1098-7339 |pmid=16418017}}

Gaston Labat pioneered spinal anesthesia techniques in the 1920s and designed an innovative unbreakable nickel spinal needle with a short, sharp bevel to reduce dural trauma.{{Cite journal |last=Calthorpe |first=N. |date=2004 |title=The history of spinal needles: getting to the point |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1365-2044.2004.03976.x |journal=Anaesthesia |language=en |volume=59 |issue=12 |pages=1231–1241 |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2044.2004.03976.x |issn=1365-2044}} Labat is most famously associated with the "Labat approach" to the sciatic nerve block, a foundational technique in regional anesthesia. This method involves injecting anesthetic near the sciatic nerve at the level of the hip using specific anatomical landmarks.{{Citation |last=Rodziewicz |first=Thomas L. |title=Sciatic Nerve Block |date=2025 |work=StatPearls |url=http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK470391/ |access-date=2025-06-03 |place=Treasure Island (FL) |publisher=StatPearls Publishing |pmid=29261958 |last2=Stevens |first2=Joshua B. |last3=Ajib |first3=Fayez A. |last4=Tunnell |first4=David J.}}

• Standardized regional anesthesia techniques.
• Bridged European and American medical practices regarding anesthesia and peri-operative care
• Advanced anesthesia as a distinct medical specialty.
• Founded the American Society of Regional Anesthesia (later evolving into the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine).

He is often regarded as the "father of regional anesthesia in America" for his work importing and popularizing regional anesthesia.{{Cite journal |last=Eisenach |first=James C. |date=2008 |title=Regional anesthesia: advancing the practice of medicine; the 2008 Gaston Labat Award lecture |url=https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2603614/ |journal=Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine |volume=33 |issue=5 |pages=463–469 |doi=10.1016/j.rapm.2008.06.006 |issn=1532-8651 |pmc=2603614 |pmid=18774516}}

In honor of his contributions to the field, the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (ASRA Pain Medicine) created the Gaston Labat Award. The award recognizes physicians and researchers who have made significant advances in regional anesthesia and pain medicine, following Labat's tradition of innovation in these fields.{{Cite web |title=Gaston Labat Award |url=https://asra.com/about-asra/recognition-awards/gaston-labat-award |access-date=2025-06-04 |website=ASRA Pain Medicine |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=IARS Board Chair Dr. Suresh Receives ASRA’s Prestigious Gaston Labat Award {{!}} IARS |url=https://iars.org/dr-suresh-receives-gaston-labat-award/ |access-date=2025-06-04 |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Conlon |first=Thomas |date=2024-04-09 |title=ASRA Bestows Dr. Christopher Wu of HSS with Gaston Labat Award |url=https://meadowlandsmedia.com/asra-bestows-dr-christopher-wu-of-hss-with-gaston-labat-award/ |access-date=2025-06-04 |website=Meadowlands Media |language=en-US}}

Gaston Labat died on October 1, 1934, in New York from postoperative complications causing emphysema and heart failure following a cholecystectomy. He was buried in Assumption Cemetery in Cortlandt Manor, Westchester County, New York, USA.{{Cite web |title=Louis Gaston Labat (1877-1934) - Find a Grave... |url=https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/94418611/louis_gaston-labat |access-date=2025-06-03 |website=www.findagrave.com |language=en}}

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Category:1876 births

Category:1934 deaths

Category:Seychellois physicians