Hektoen International

A Journal of Medical Humanities

Tag: Caduceus serpent

  • Sebastian: Plague saint

    Christopher DuffinLondon, England As is true for the legends of many medieval saints, details of the life of Saint Sebastian (died c. 286) rely heavily on the account of Jacobus da Varagine (also Jacopo de Fazio; c. 1230–1298). Born in Varagine (now Varezza), around 30… Read more

  • The freedom to matter

    Mustafa Çalıkİzmir, Türkiye I met Mr. Denise in late autumn during a clinical rotation on a busy hospitalist service. He was a former high school history teacher, a detail he offered not with pride, but with the resignation of a man whose identity had been… Read more

  • On Panizza, Panizzi, and more

    Avi OhryTel Aviv, Israel Panizza is an Italian surname originating primarily from Lombardy and Piedmonte, derived from the Latin panis (bread) and designating a baker or someone associated with the grain trade. Variations of the name include Panizzi, Pane, Panini, Panigada, and Panetta. Paolo Panizza1,2… Read more

  • The one-eyed man of Epidaurus and the history of symblepharon

    David MaskillLeeds, United Kingdom At the sanctuary of Asklepios in Epidaurus, four limestone stelae preserve around seventy clinical vignettes from the fourth century BC: the Iamata (ἴαματα) or “remedies.” Pilgrims here underwent enkoimesis (ἐγκοίμησις), an incubation sleep (perhaps induced by the opium found among the… Read more

  • AI and the language of medicine

    Elena IliadisWashington, D.C., United States The better part of medical school, I would argue, is learning to speak the language. The language of medicine is nuanced: there is language of diagnosis and of prescribing, language between medical professionals, and importantly, language within the physician-patient relationship.… Read more

  • A measles death in the family

    Ellen DavisChapel Hill, North Carolina, United States In 1949, before there was a vaccine, my thirteen-year-old brother Freddie died from encephalitis, a direct complication of measles. A person with measles (rubeola or “standard” measles) develops a fever and redness of the eyes, nose, and throat… Read more

  • Medicine in ancient and modern Syria and Lebanon

    Syria and Lebanon are modern countries with ancient memories. The earliest settlements date back to the Paleolithic era, while during the Bronze Age, the coastal cities of Byblos, Sidon, and Tire emerged as trading hubs and conduits of knowledge, as their ships carried cedar, purple… Read more

  • Taiwan: History and healthcare

    Taiwan is a mountainous island about 180 kilometers off China’s mainland coast, with a population of roughly 23 million. A prosperous society, it is a leading center of advanced semiconductor production by companies such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. Its history begins with Austronesian-speaking Indigenous… Read more

  • Harry Dowling  

    Dr. Harry Filmore Dowling (1904–2000) was a distinguished physician, educator, and pioneer in infectious-disease medicine. Born in Washington, D.C., he graduated magna cum laude from Franklin and Marshall College and received his medical degree with distinction from George Washington University in 1931. He then completed… Read more

  • The wrong geographical timeline

    Riddhi NaikBambolim, India It was just another day in medical school. I was posted in the postnatal ward on a bright, sunny March morning. The ward was filled with young mothers full of hope and love for their newborns. Spring was in full bloom- both… Read more

  • Hortus Sanitatis (1491): The Garden of Health

    Christopher DuffinLondon, England The Hortus Sanitatis was published in Mainz (western central Germany) on June 23, 1491 by Jacob Meydenbach (fl. fifteenth century).1 In the forty years or so since Johannes Gutenberg (c. 1393–1406–1468) first invented printing using movable type, the industry had undergone many… Read more

  • Uganda, the Pearl of Africa

    Winston Churchill described this landlocked East African country as the “Pearl of Africa.” Archaeological evidence shows that humans have lived there for at least 50,000 years and that, over millennia, Bantu-speaking cultivators gradually cleared forests, introduced ironworking, and established stable agricultural communities. By the first… Read more