Lest we forget: Remembering the Great War
(Source: Journal of Medical Biography)
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - October 13, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: Connor, H. Tags: Editorial Source Type: research
Letter to the Editor
(Source: Journal of Medical Biography)
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - July 3, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: Connor, H. Tags: Letter to the Editor Source Type: research
Jean-Etienne Esquirol (1772-1840)
(Source: Journal of Medical Biography)
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - July 3, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: de Parades, V. Tags: Medical statues Source Type: research
Medical Memorial: Sir James Young Simpson (1811-1870)
(Source: Journal of Medical Biography)
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - July 3, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: Scott, J. Tags: Medical Memorial Source Type: research
Serendipity: a personal tale of two biographies, William Richard Gowers (1845-1915) and his son Ernest (1880-1966)
This article describes the author’s experience conducting the research for two biographies at a time when the research tools available were rapidly shifting from paper-based to digital records. Technological aids have made the preliminary research of historians easier, but they have not taken the place of hard copy archive-based research. While the paper will focus primarily on the biography of William Richard Gowers, the author describes the research methods she employed to help reveal the personalities, strengths and weaknesses of both men, each of whom left his own intellectual legacy. (Source: Journal of Medical Biography)
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - July 3, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: Scott, A. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research
James Edmund Reeves (1829-1896) and the contentious 19th century battle for medical professionalism in the United States
During his life, Dr James E Reeves was a national figure in the US. His work included multiple professional publications, civic and professional leadership positions, and the drafting of a landmark law that confirmed the right of states to regulate the medical profession. While much of Reeves’ work supported the successful struggle of 19th century regular physicians to gain control of the practice of medicine, he challenged his colleagues when their self-interests conflicted with his perception of the public good. He was frequently lauded for this work by physicians and the public but he also made professional enemie...
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - July 3, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: Harris, J. M. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research
Nicholas Culpeper (1616-1654): London's first general practitioner?
Nicholas Culpeper is often regarded as an ill-disciplined, maverick, mid-17th century herbalist and the father of contemporary alternative medicine. There are elements of this statement that have some truth but to dismiss his contribution to the development of health provision in London at the time would be a great injustice. Culpeper did not complete his apprenticeship as an apothecary and was not a formally trained physician, but he developed a clinical practice for the poor of London, indistinguishable from the role of the present day general practitioner. Observers at the time recognised his concern and compassion and ...
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - July 3, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: Farthing, M. J. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research
Nikolay Ivanovich Pirogov (1810-1881) and Bernhard von Langenbeck (1810-1887): similarities on the anniversary of their 200th birthdays
The year 2010 marked the 200th anniversary of the birth of two great surgeons, the German Bernard von Langebeck and the Russian Nikolay Ivanovich Pirogov. The anniversary was celebrated throughout the world and in Russia where the year 2010 was declared ‘The Year of Pirogov’. However, in England the work of these men is not well known and is little appreciated. Both men were born in the same month of the same year in different countries with different cultures. Despite the contrasts, the similarities between their lives are striking. This paper explores the parallels between their lives and their contributions ...
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - July 3, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: Telichkin, I. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research
The King's anaesthetic
King George VI underwent an operation for pneumonectomy in September 1951. Part of the operation anaesthetic record has survived. With conjecture, on a typical scenario of a 55-year-old male undergoing pulmonary resection for carcinoma in the early 1950s and other facts in the public domain, the King’s anaesthetic has been reconstructed to give an approximation of the events that in the last few months of his life caused his speech to change from that achieved by his personal voice coach and recently portrayed on celluloid in the film ‘The King's Speech'. The popularity and success of the film ‘The King&r...
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - July 3, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: Conacher, I. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research
Sangye Gyatso (1653-1705) and the medical paintings of Tibet
Sangye Gyatso played a major role in the politics of 17th century Tibet, and was the originator of the medical paintings that encompassed the full scope of Tibetan medicine.
The depictions became an important aid in medical education, and was heavily influenced by Buddhist thinking. The paintings arose in a visual culture dominated by religious art. (Source: Journal of Medical Biography)
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - July 3, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: Chen, T. S., Chen, P. S. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research
Professor Georgy Nestorovich Speransky (1873-1969): A great soviet paediatrician
This paper is a biography of a great Soviet paediatrician, Professor Georgy Nestorovich Speransky, known as the founder of Russian neonatology. He was the organizer, Director and scientific leader of the first State Research Institute of Maternity and Infant Care in the USSR which later was reorganized as the State Research Institute of Paediatrics of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the USSR. He organized the first Russian medical department of childhood diseases at the Central Institute of Continuing Education for Medical Doctors, where he and his colleagues taught physiology and pathology. He was one of the initiators...
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - July 3, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: Sher, S. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research
Frederick, Duke of York (1763-1827) - Medical Patron
Frederick, Duke of York, was the hardest working prince of his day. He was Commander-in-Chief of the British Army for almost the entire period of the French revolutionary and Napoleonic wars and he used his position to implement important reforms to benefit the health of troops. He encouraged hygiene initiatives and improved medical treatment, steadily seeking to enhance the quality of medical officers and facilities. Frederick was particularly involved in the spread of vaccination, authorising the very earliest clinical trials of the process and doing all he could to promote the practice. He also played an active role in ...
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - July 3, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: Bolton, M. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research
Biography: Hagiography or demonology?
(Source: Journal of Medical Biography)
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - May 13, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: Noble, J. Tags: Biography Source Type: research
William Orange CB, MD, FRCP, LSA: A Broadmoor pioneer
William Orange was the second Medical Superintendent of Broadmoor and in the 23 years he spent there created a management style that was greatly admired. Among his patients were the painter Richard Dadd, the Surgeon of Crowthorne and the Brighton poisoner. As advisor to the Home Office he also made a significant contribution to the interface between medicine and the law. (Source: Journal of Medical Biography)
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - May 13, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: Lansdown, R. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research
Walter Mercer's (1891-1971) contribution to the surgical treatment of low back pain
In 1936, Walter Mercer described a new method for the operative treatment of patients with spondylolisthesis. Using a transabdominal approach in two patients he inserted iliac crest bone graft into the intervertebral disc. His publication in the Edinburgh Medical Journal caused a furore as the levels operated on did not reflect the description and one of the two patients died post-operatively. However, Mercer continued to promote the operation in his textbooks. The anterior approach to the lumbar spine is now performed routinely. This paper explores Mercer’s contribution to anterior spinal surgery. (Source: Journal of Medical Biography)
Source: Journal of Medical Biography - May 13, 2015 Category: History of Medicine Authors: Hughes, S. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research
