Hektoen International

A Journal of Medical Humanities

Tag: Thomas Woodrow Wilson Twenty-Eighth President of the United States A Psychological Study

  • Lead poisoning—not vanquished

    Humans began to introduce harmful lead into their bodies thousands of years ago, causing symptoms that the Greek philosopher Nikander of Colophon recognized around 2000 BC. The lead entered the body through pipes, paints, gasoline, and countless other applications and was distributed by the bloodstream to… Read more

  • Famines throughout history

    Since times immemorial there have been numerous famines in the world. Droughts, floods, and crop failures have claimed millions of lives, often the consequence of wars, injudicious policies, repressive measures, but frequently described as inevitable or attributed to supernatural causes.   The earliest famines recorded… Read more

  • The anti-vaccination movement

    The anti-vaccination movement, a diverse coalition that opposes the use of vaccines, represents a serious public health challenge. Amplified by the internet and social media, it threatens society’s wellbeing by contributing to the resurgence of infectious diseases and undermining trust in established science. Its arguments,… Read more

  • Frédéric Chopin: Poland’s greatest composer (1810–1849)

    Frédéric Chopin was one of the greatest piano composers of the Romantic era. Born to a French father and a Polish mother, he grew up in a household that highly valued education and culture. By age six, he was already creating musical compositions, and at… Read more

  • Robert Braidwood’s “Did Man Once Live by Beer Alone?”

    In his 1953 essay “Did Man Once Live by Beer Alone?”, archaeologist Robert J. Braidwood raised a provocative question that hinted at deeper anthropological and historical truths about the origins of agriculture. Though framed with a certain tongue-in-cheek humor, the piece explored a serious and… Read more

  • Ivan Čobal’s “Blue Wall” at the Maribor University Clinical Centre in Slovenia

    Mojca RamšakLjubljana, Slovenia Patients, physicians, and staff at Maribor University Clinical Centre pass an extraordinary piece of artwork each day: a blue wall made of elongated ceramic tiles with welded iron metal reliefs. The “Blue Wall,” officially titled Times Were Better Once (Nekoč so bili… Read more

  • Separating the inseparable: Seeing and practice makes it possible

    Alan Jay SchwartzPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania, United States Conjoined twins present a rare and challenging occurrence. With an incidence of 1 per 50,000–200,000 births,1 the successful separation of conjoined twins is a phenomenal medical-surgical challenge.2 Two reasons, among others, explain why such separation has become successful: a)… Read more

  • The striking parallels between the assassinations of James Garfield and William McKinley

    Kevin R. LoughlinBoston, Massachusetts, United States For decades, historians have commented on the coincidences of the Lincoln and Kennedy assassinations. They both suffered mortal head wounds and were shot on a Friday. It is speculated that conspiracies were involved in both assassinations. Both men were… Read more

  • Elephant’s medical

    Elephants, the largest living land mammals, possess several features that have long interested scientists and biologists. Their size, longevity, unique anatomy, and disease resistance offer valuable insights for broader biomedical research. Their resistance to cancer is remarkable, given their massive size and long lifespan, up… Read more

  • Gardens: Living pharmacies

    The connection between medicine and gardens runs deep. Gardens have long served as places of beauty and serenity and also as living pharmacies where healing plants were cultivated with care. This relationship between horticulture and healing represents one of humanity’s oldest and most enduring partnerships.… Read more

  • Dingler’s Panama tragedy

    Enrique Chaves-CarballoKansas City, Kansas, United States According to David McCullough, author of best-seller The Path Between the Seas, Jules Isidore Dingler “was not impressive-looking…he was short and bald…had small round shoulders, a soft, round face, soft blue eyes, and a drooping, mahogany-colored mustache….The appearance suggested… Read more

  • Asymmetrical masks of indigenous Alaskan peoples: Do they represent facial paralysis or not?

    Peter De SmetNijmegen, Netherlands Asymmetrical masks of indigenous Alaskan peoples have been interpreted time and again as representations of facial paralysis in the biomedical literature.1-8 Among the arguments in favor of this view is that otitis media once was a health concern in Alaska and… Read more