The state of being free from pathogenic microorganisms; the practice of maintaining sterile conditions to prevent infection.
From Greek 'a-' (without) + 'sepsis' (decay, putrefaction). The medical term emerged in the 19th century as germ theory revolutionized surgery and medicine.
Before doctors figured out asepsis, surgery was basically a death sentence because people would survive the operation but die from infection—learning to keep things sterile literally saved millions of lives!
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