A European surgeon: Thoma Ionescu (Thomas Jonnesco)--founder of the Romanian school of surgery (1860-1926).

Thoma Ionescu, the distinguished surgeon and anatomist, is rightly considered the founder of the Romanian school of surgery and topographic anatomy whose achievements became well-known in Europe and North America. He introduced several new surgical techniques, as wall as rachianaesthesia, and identified and formulated the main principles of rectal and uterine oncologic surgery. Moreover, he was the first to describe the paraduodenal fossae and the internal retroperitoneal hernias. His other contributions consisted of studies on the effects of cervical sympathectomy and, obviously, the development of experimental surgery.