Earlier this week, Dr. Basil Pruitt, a retired Army surgeon and University of Texas-San Antonio professor who revolutionized care and survival rates for patients with severe burns, passed away. His life story is inspiring and remarkable.
Dr. Pruitt was a master clinician or treating doctor who also became the most-cited researcher in burn care, and who developed topical creams, like Sulfamylon (mafenide acetate), which helped burn patients heal due to their anti-microbial properties.
He was a scientist whose revolutionary work changed the bleak treatment outcomes for patients with severe burns over a large portion of their bodies, when he started this work over 50 years ago, to something much more manageable and hopeful in the present day.
Those impressive improvements have been shared with burn centers worldwide, effecting soldiers and civilians, and saving countless lives. Here is a link to Dr. Pruitt’s obituary in the San Antonio Express-News to learn more:
