Tag: Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research
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John Caius, MD (1510–1573)
JMS PearceHull, England Eminent physicians are remembered in different ways. A few have a street, statue, university department, or hall to perpetuate their name. But to have a college named after you is an uncommon distinction. John (Johannes) Caius—usually pronounced Keys—was born in Norwich, son… Read more
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Chocolate created a commotion in Chiapa cathedral
Howard FischerUppsala, Sweden “Beware the chocolate of Chiapas.”—Mexican saying The cacao bean, the essential ingredient in chocolate, is native to Southern Mexico, Central America, and South America. There is evidence that chocolate was used in Ecuador over 5,000 years ago.1 The Aztecs produced a ceremonial… Read more
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Sand flies, leishmaniasis, and kala-azar
Sand flies are about three millimeters long and gray, brownish or golden, with long, piercing mouthparts adapted for sucking blood from their hosts. These seemingly innocuous creatures, classified as belonging to the genus Phlebotomus or Lutzomyia, have long legs and hairy wings held in a… Read more
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Bioarchaeological findings support ancient representations of surgical limb amputation, part two: Examples from the New World
Peter de SmetNijmegen, Netherlands See Part One for examples from the Old World Case 4: Finger amputation among the ancient Maya Iconography1 The vessel in Fig. 1 is in the collections of the Ethnologisches Museum in Berlin (inv.no. IV Ca 15186 a). It was found… Read more
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Bioarchaeological findings support ancient representations of surgical limb amputation, part one: Examples from the Old World
Peter de SmetNijmegen, Netherlands See Part Two for examples from the New World Surgical amputation is defined here as the cutting or chopping off a protruding part of the body (as a whole or partial limb). It has been known for a long time that… Read more
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Fasciola hepatica, the liver fluke of sheep and cattle
The liver flukes Fasciola hepatica and gigantica are parasitic infections that affect humans and animals—cattle, sheep, and goats—in all inhabited areas where they are raised, on all continents, and in over eighty countries. People acquire the disease by eating raw vegetables such as watercress that… Read more
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Tapeworm tribulations
Taenia saginata, solium, and asiatica are three related species of tapeworms, each with its own lifecycle, mode of transmission, and clinical implications. The adult tapeworms cause few symptoms, but their larvae can be more troublesome. These parasites have afflicted mankind for thousands of years, perhaps… Read more
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On blue and blues
Avi OhryTel Aviv, Israel As a child born with blue eyes, I wondered why I don’t see the world around me in a blue color. Later in life, as an amateur jazz drummer, I was passionate about the popular song “Blue Moon” (1934), Jobim’s “No… Read more
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Lasting effects of Agent Orange
Ceres Alhelí Otero PenicheMexico City, Mexico Agent Orange was an herbicide used by the United States military from 1962 to 1971 in the Vietnam War. To prevent Vietnamese soldiers from being able to hide among the trees, Agent Orange was used to clear forests in… Read more
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The bow tie: For nerds only or necessary neckwear?
Howard FischerUppsala, Sweden “You’ve been with the professors / and they all liked your looks…”–Bob Dylan, “Ballad of a Thin Man” The tie, whether the long necktie or the bow tie, is a piece of apparel without any real function. It is widely believed that… Read more
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Ernest A. Codman and the idea of medical accountability
Curtis MargoTampa, Florida, United States There are few treatises in the annals of history that have noticeably altered the course of medicine. The first and most conspicuous would be The Corpus, a collection of more than fifty essays attributed to Hippocrates of Cos.1 Among its… Read more
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King Henry III of Castile, the Suffering
Nicolas RoblesBadajoz, Spain Henry III of Castile was called “the Suffering” (in Spanish, Enrique III el Doliente) because of his ill health. He was the son of John I and Eleanor of Aragon, born in 1379 in Burgos. Henry was the first person to hold… Read more