Hektoen International

A Journal of Medical Humanities

Tag: Haitian National University School of Medicine

  • Physicians of the American Revolution

    Kevin LoughlinBoston, Massachusetts, United States As the American Revolution began in 1775, the practice of medicine in the colonies was still in its nascent stages. There were only two medical schools in North America: the University of Pennsylvania, founded in 1765 by John Morgan and… Read more

  • Epidemic autism?

    JMS PearceHull, England All the features that characterize Asperger’s syndrome can be found in varying degrees in the normal population.—JK Wing, Asperger’s syndrome: a clinical account” Impairment in social interaction, communication, and repetitive and stereotyped behavior characterize autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The prevalence of Kanner’s… Read more

  • Sam McGee, Dan, and me

    Julius BonelloPeoria, Illinois, United States We had just finished an endoscopic procedure and the patient had left the room. We were scurrying around in the dark getting ready for the next patient. As ‘50s and ‘60s music  played in the background, we challenged each other… Read more

  • Book review: Scars and Stains: Lessons from Intensive Care

    Arpan K. BanerjeeSolihull, England In his book Scars and Stains: Lessons from Intensive Care, Mark ZY Tan, a trained anesthetist and intensive care physician, tells stories of patients admitted to the ICU and the split-second clinical decisions and ethical dilemmas faced by the staff involved in… Read more

  • Medical portraits of Max Liebermann

    Avi OhryTel Aviv, Israel Max Liebermann was one of Germany’s most influential painters of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, recognized primarily for his Impressionist style and leadership in German modernism. Durin his long career, Liebermann painted several medical persons who achieved considerable recognition… Read more

  • Von Recklinghausen (1833–1910)

    Friedrich Daniel von Recklinghausen is remembered eponymously for describing the genetic disorder neurofibromatosis type 1. He was born in 1833 in Gütersloh, Westphalia, where his father was an elementary school teacher, and his mother died shortly after his birth. He attended high school at Ratsgymnasium… Read more

  • Democedes, “the most skillful physician of his time”

    The renowned Greek physician Democedes of Croton is remembered for his expertise and influential role in the courts of ancient rulers. His father was Calliphon, a priest, physician, and of such savage temper that he caused Democedes to leave Croton and sail away to the… Read more

  • John Polidori, physician and writer

    Nicolas RoblesBadajoz, Spain He thought, in fine, that the dreams of poets were the realities of life.—Polidori, The Vampire Some have regarded John William Polidori as the inventor of the vampire ghost story style. Born in 1795 in the City of Westminster, he was the… Read more

  • The rise and fall of human dissection 

    The practice of dissecting human bodies can be traced back to the Greek physicians Herophilus (335–280 BC) and Erasistratus (304–250 BC) of Alexandria, or even earlier to a rite of passage of the pharaohs to the kingdom of the dead. Roman law and early Christian… Read more

  • Bicentenary of the birth of Pierre Paul Broca (1824–1880)

    JMS PearceHull, England This year marks the bicentenary of the birth of Pierre Paul Broca, who established the cerebral localization of motor, expressive speech, and language function.1 He was the son of Jean “Benjamin” Broca, a surgeon in Napoleon’s army, and Annette Thomas. Broca was… Read more

  • Emil von Behring and passive antibody therapy

    In a March 1929 editorial, the British Medical Journal referred to Emil von Behring (1854–1917) as one of the greatest benefactors of humanity. Recipient of the first-ever Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine and awarded a title of nobility, the German physiologist who developed a… Read more

  • The Siege of Constantinople as witnessed by a physician, 1453

    The diary by Nicolò Barbaro of the Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks remains one of the most valuable firsthand sources of the seven-week siege of the Byzantine capital by the forces of Sultan Mehmed II. The author was an Italian physician, born into… Read more