Hektoen International

A Journal of Medical Humanities

Tag: Dental Institute of the University of Vienna

  • Dr. Davis discovers desirable dietary decisions

    Howard FischerUppsala, Sweden “[Clara Davis did] one of the most fundamental and far-reaching pieces of work that has been done in my time.”1– Dr. Joseph Brennemann (1872–1944), chief of pediatrics, Children’s Memorial Hospital, Chicago Clara M. Davis (1878–1959) received her M.D. degree in 1901. While… Read more

  • The final illness of Thomas Wolfe

    Thomas Clayton Wolfe was one of the most important American novelists and short story writers of the early 20th century. When he died as a young man in 1938, he joined the long list of literati victims of the dreaded “captain of these men of… Read more

  • Diptheria: Horses and dogs to the rescue

    Jayant RadhakrishnanChicago, Illinois, United States Pierre-Fidèle Bretonneau described diphtheria as a distinct entity in 1821.1 He named it after the Greek word for leather2 because of the thick gray membrane that forms in the throat. Physicians before him, starting with Hippocrates, considered asphyxiating diseases as… Read more

  • The Rosenbach eyelid sign

    J.D. BartlestonCynthia J. ChelfDietlind L. Wahner-RoedlerRochester, Minnesota, United States Functional neurological disorders are difficult to diagnose and treat, in large part because there are no objective physical, laboratory, or pathological findings to confirm or exclude the diagnosis. This brief communication describes the Rosenbach eyelid sign… Read more

  • Home is where the heart is

    Asim KhanNew Brunswick, New Jersey, United States Home is where the heart is,That’s how the old saying goes,But where is home? Apparently, no one knows. Feet perched up on the desk, the intern removes from her ears her brand-new Bose,The alarm of siren, a code… Read more

  • Medical Spanish at Mayo Clinic

    Lea DacyRochester, Minnesota, United States The anesthesiologist was thrilled when she asked a Spanish-speaking post-surgery patient to wiggle his toes, and he understood and complied. A medical secretary appropriately triaged a caller from Caracas. Other colleagues on their lunchbreaks were able to direct Spanish-speaking visitors… Read more

  • The vision of a visionary: JMW Turner RA

    JMS PearceHull, England “The artist who could most stirringly and truthfully measure the moods of Nature.”– John Ruskin The preeminent artist Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775–1851) was born in Maiden Lane, Covent Garden, London, the only son of William Turner, a wigmaker, and Mary Ann… Read more

  • James Ensor’s Bad Doctors

    Howard FischerUppsala, Sweden “Je crois être un peintre d’exception.” (I believe myself to be an exceptional painter.)1– James Ensor The Belgian artist James Ensor (1860–1949) used his paintings as social criticism. He despised the church, courts, judges, lawyers, art critics, civil authorities, and doctors.2 He… Read more

  • Rita Levi-Montalcini (1909–2012): “Chance favors the prepared mind”

    James L. FranklinChicago, Illinois, United States On December 10, 1986, Rita Levi-Montalcini and Stanley Cohen shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their work in neurobiology and for the discovery of “nerve growth factor” (NGF) that has since shed light on tumors, wound… Read more

  • The root of all problems

    Anthony PapagiannisThessaloniki, Greece Several years ago, I had a neighbor in his eighties who was also my patient. Whenever the need arose I would visit him at home after office hours, and we would have an informal chat as his children were friends of mine… Read more

  • Ian Donald: Ultrasound pioneer

    Arpan K. BanerjeeSolihull, England Ian Donald was born in Liskeard, Cornwall, UK in 1910 of Scottish ancestry. His father was a general practitioner. He was educated in Scotland at Fettes College and spent a brief period in South Africa from 1925 to 1930, where he… Read more

  • Laughter is not the best medicine

    David FosterNew York, New York, United States Even as I spent hours every week sitting in lectures, plus hundreds of thousands of dollars on my Chinese medicine education, I still never figured that I would become an actual acupuncturist. I was a comedian, first and… Read more