Public sanitation, including the flushing toilet, was picked as the greatest medical breakthrough since 1840 in an international poll released in London.
Antibiotics received the second-highest number of votes in the British Medical Journal Poll of 11,000 respondents, The Times of London reported.
Medical professionals picked anesthesia as most important, The Times said.
But Adam Hart-Davis, author and host of the BBC series "What the Victorians Did for Us," told The Times that sanitation deserved to win.
"Contamination of drinking water is still the single biggest killer in the world and it always has been," he said. "As such, the humble lavatory is the greatest device ever invented in medical history."
The winner was announced at an awards ceremony in London, where doctors and scientists praised each medical milestone. Other contenders for the prize included DNA and vaccines.
Copyright 2007 by United Press International
Related stories:
European agency warns of possible Botox side effects: report
Months after US authorities sounded the alarm, European officials are warning of dangerous possible side effects from the wrinkle-smoothing injection Botox, according to a German news report.
All types of antipsychotic drugs increase the risk of stroke
All drugs used to treat psychosis are linked to an increased risk of stroke, and dementia sufferers are at double the risk, according to a study published on bmj.com today.
Epilepsy linked to higher risk of drowning
People with epilepsy appear to have a much higher risk of drowning compared to people without epilepsy, according to a study published in the August 19, 2008, issue of
Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Previous studies have shown a higher risk most likely due to seizures but this study is one of the first to show exactly how high the risk may be.
Small birth size linked to changes in the cardiovascular system that predispose to later disease
Researchers have found the first evidence that smaller size at birth is associated with specific alterations in the functioning of the heart and circulation in children and that these changes differ between boys and girls.
Gene variant found in those with African ancestry increases odds of HIV infection
A variant of a gene found only in people of African ancestry increases the odds of becoming infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) by 40 percent, according to a long-term study of African Americans reported in the [date] issue of the journal
Cell Host & Microbe, a publication of Cell Press. However, once people are infected, the same variant seems to protect against progression of the disease, allowing those who carry it to live about two years longer.
Study says cut to junior doctors' hours does not compromise patients' safety
Research led by a team at the University of Warwick's Warwick Medical School has found that reducing the hours of junior doctors does not compromise patients' safety and could even dramatically cut mistakes on wards but, there are some concerns about reduced educational opportunities for junior doctors which it affords.
Since introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy, HIV death rate has decreased
In industrialized countries, persons infected sexually with HIV now appear to experience mortality rates similar to those of the general population in the first 5 years following infection, though a higher risk of death remains as the duration of HIV infection lengthens, according to a study in the July 2 issue of
JAMA.
Can we freeze time? Using lasers to film the secret lives of atoms -- frame by frame
Cutting edge laser 'cameras' which can film the super-fast movements of electrons inside materials are the subject of an Imperial College exhibit at the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition 2008, which opens to the public today (1 July).