Some two thousand years, an ancient Roman physician made a trip to Hungary, for unknown reasons, and now, archaeologists have found his tomb near Jászberény, a city located approximately 50 miles...
The ancient Egyptians were pioneers in many fields, including medicine. From dentistry to surgery, they developed a wide range of treatments and techniques that were well ahead of their time. But...
History is filled with bizarre, and often degrading, jobs that we can’t imagine doing today. Shepherd of the Royal Anus is up there with the worst of them. The ancient Egyptians have been remembered...
One of the most fascinating medical phenomena is the placebo effect. In medicine, a placebo is considered to be any medical treatment that is not “real.” This could be a fake pill, shot, or in some...
Male impotence, commonly known as erectile dysfunction, is known today to have many causes, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, post-prostatectomy procedures, neurological or psychological...
Abu Bakr Muhammad Ibn Zakariya Al Razi is not a familiar name to most in the English-speaking world. But he was one of the most notable persons in the history of medicine. He was a renowned Persian...
Throughout history, needing the help of a surgeon was almost a death sentence because if one did not die on the operating table, one would feel the excruciating agony brought from the heavy crude...
Of all the methods of healing and therapy, one would never think of hypothermia as an effective medical aid. But is there more to cold than we realize? Therapeutic hypothermia has surprisingly old...
Michel Nostradamus has been credited with many future prophecies, from the death of King Henry II of France to the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs. For most of his life he was a credible scientist who...
There has long been speculation about the true cause of Napoleon Bonaparte’s death on the island of St. Helena on May 5, 1821. As we mark the 200th anniversary of this event, a biochemist from De...
Researchers studying the antique medicine chest of Japanese Edo -era physician , Ogata Koan, discovered enough poison to kill a small army. But why? Koan was a leading a 19th century Japanese medical...
The plague doctor mask is one of the most recognizable symbols of the Black Death. Though the image is iconic the relationship may be a little anachronistic. While plague doctors have been plying...
By Leslie Neal-Boylan / The Conversation Nurses are heroes of the COVID-19 crisis. May 12 is International Nurses Day, which commemorates the birthday of Florence Nightingale, the first “professional...
Human remains found on a Greek island are changing how experts view the development of surgical interventions in the proto-Byzantine period. A skull shows the traces of complex brain surgery . The...
New research from Adelphi University has revealed the first forensically-assessed archaeological discovery of remains of a group of domineering mounted archer-lancers and their kin of the Eastern...
Eutyches was a homo bonus - a good man - and evidently a good surgeon . His name was engraved, probably by a grateful patient, on the wall of the cubiculum where patients were kept under observation...
A new study has shown that Michelangelo knew facts about the human circulatory system over a century before scientists and doctors. A prominent jugular vein in the neck of Michelangelo’s David shows...
Merit Ptah is often called the first woman doctor. Now, a researcher calls it a case of mistaken identity. For decades, an ancient Egyptian known as Merit Ptah has been celebrated as the first female...
Little is known about the origins of manikins- small anatomical sculptures thought to be used by doctors four centuries ago- but now advanced imaging techniques have offered a revealing glimpse...
It’s no surprise that the history of medicine had a rocky and somewhat gruesome journey before reaching its current, modern state. From the earliest meddling in surgery in Classical Antiquity to the...
Most people have heard of the eminent physician Hippocrates and his famous oath. But far fewer know of Shennong, Avicenna, and Andreas Vesalius – some of the lesser-known figures to have transformed...
The Ebers Papyrus is an ancient medical document that contains over 842 remedies for illnesses and injuries. It specifically focused on the heart, the respiratory system, and diabetes. The Papyrus...
A recent discovery is demonstrating the influence of Islamic medicine on European physicians. A fragment from a book dating from the 1400s has revealed the influence of a Muslim Persian polymath on...
A surprising Google Doodle has greeted users of the search engine in the UK. The image celebrates the 1038th birthday of Persian polymath Ibn Sina. For many in the West, this may be the first...