Hektoen International

A Journal of Medical Humanities

Tag: shrapnel

  • Shostakovich, shrapnel, and chronic poliomyelitis

    Michael Yafi Houston Texas, United States The life of Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975) has fascinated artists, musicologists, and physicians who have tried to make a connection between his medical history and musical repertoire. Having once said, “When I hear about someone else’s pain, I feel pain too,” Shostakovich was known to be very sensitive. He internalized…

  • Shrapnel

    Christopher J. SchayerNew Haven, Connecticut His gloved hand grazed lightly the bulbous edges of my abdominal scars. My entire left flank, once lean and muscular, is now rippled with nodules of scar tissue and adhesions. I was not his average patient and as his fingers traversed the lumpy terrain of my abdomen, he began to…