The first man/machine interaction in medicine: the pulsilogium of Sanctorius.
This article, published in lieu of the customary feature, artifact, describes one of the earliest medical devices--a device to measure pulse rate. A close examination of the pulsilogium of Sanctorius of Padua (1561--1636) reveals it to be something more than the first measuring device in medical history; it is also the first man/machine system in medicine. Using a systems approach, pulsilogium and physician interaction is found to contain important dynamic characteristics. The device is operated in a negative feedback mode, employs the concept of transduction, and measures pulse through another dimension--length. More than 100 years after its invention, the pulsilogium found useful application by de la Croix in measurements of cardiac function during "electrification."
D049669:History, 16th Century; D049670:History, 17th Century; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D008328:Man-Machine Systems; D013677:Medical Laboratory Science / Q000266:history*; D011674:Pulse