Elizabeth Topley

  • Studied medicine at University College London in late 1930s
  • Her father was Professor of Bacteriology at the London School of Hygiene
  • Joined the MRC Unit in 1946. And introduced controlled trials and the importance of assessing the results accurately, along with John Squire
  • Dr Elizabeth Topley (who left in 1962 to work in Gambia) and Dr John Davis (who moved to Glasgow in 1980) concerning blood volume measurements in burns and other trauma together with the related work of Dr Colin Ricketts (who retired in 1981) on blood volume expanders especially dextran.

Research

Finger pulp infections

  • Betty Topley and Stuart Harrison carried out controlled trials 189 finger pulp infections.
  • Looking at antibiotics and various surgical treatments. 
  • Systemic antibiotics with minimal surgical intervention produced the best results 

Blood Loss and Replacement

  • Worked with Ruscoe Clarke
  • Exploring role of hypovolaemia in shock
  • Pioneering work to measure external losses and labelling methods for blood volume estimates
  • Able to forecast the likely blood loss from injuries of different types and demonstrate clinically the prevention of shock – often referred to as the “illness of trauma” when adequate transfusion was given
  • 24 hour pioneering blood bank set up, organised in the hospital with initial NHS staff
    • MRC volunteer staffing
  • This was an excellent example of recently application of clinical research findings. This work was ground breaking.

A sample of other research Elizabeth was involved in:

  • Jackson, D.M., Lowbury, E.J.L. and Topley, E., 1951. Pseudomonas pvocyanea in Burns. Its Role as a Pathogen, and the Value of Local Polymyxin Therapy. Lancet, pp.137-47.
  • Squire, J.R., Cruickshank, C.N.D. and Topley, E., 1950. Occupational skin disease. British Medical Bulletin, 7(1-2), pp.28-41.
  • Topley, E. and Jackson, D.M., 1957. The clinical control of red cell loss in burns. Journal of clinical pathology, 10(1), p.1.
  • Jackson, D., Topley, E., Cason, J.S. and Lowbury, E.J.L., 1960. Primary excision and grafting of large burns. Annals of surgery, 152(2), p.167.
  • Weiner, W. and Topley, E., 1955. Döhle bodies in the leucocytes of patients with burns. Journal of Clinical Pathology, 8(4), p.324.
  • BAAR, S. and TOPLEY, E., 1955. Haemoglobin metabolism and serum proteins following trauma. Acta Medica Scandinavica, 153(4), pp.319-328.
  • Topley, E. and Frost, J., 1963. Blood loss in burns. The Journal of Pathology and Bacteriology, 85(1), pp.103-111.
  • Topley, E., 1987. The contribution of Ruscoe Clarke and his team to knowledge relevant to blood loss after injury. Injury, 18(6), pp.373-378.
  • Clarke, R., Fisher, M., Topley, E. and Davies, J.W.L., 1961. Extent and time of blood-loss after civilian injury. The Lancet, 278(7199), pp.381-386.