Jacques Louis Reverdin (1842-1929), Swiss surgeon. Reverdin studied medicine in Paris, and worked as surgeon to the Swiss ambulance service during the siege of Paris in 1870. On returning to Geneva, Reverdin worked for 34 years at the hospital, and 24 years in the faculty of medicine. He performed the first human skin graft operation around 1870, and in 1908 he performed the first skin allograft (between two people). His methods revolutionised the treatment of wounds by helping to prevent infection and hasten healing. Epidermal or pinch grafts are called Reverdin grafts in his honour, and a type of suture needle is also named after him.