Reviewing the Medical Books and Journals that constituted Medical understanding a century back.

History of the Book of Medicine

June 27th, 2007 at 9:39 pm

Heart a Double Organ

in: Heart

Heart a Double Organ. --On looking at the heart one would think it was a single, solid organ. It is not, however, but a double organ, divided into four compartment; the two upper ones, and they're supposed resemblance to a dog's ear, are called auricles, and the lower ones, from resembling a little stomach, are called ventricles. The auricle and ventricle on each side communicate with one another, but the right and left halves of the heart are each separate and distinct organs, and perform different functions -- the right side propels the dark, vitiated and impure blood, whilst the left deals with the bright crimson, life -- giving and life -- sustaining blood.

I found it odd that the author referred to the left and right sections of the heart communicating with each other. They do work in tandem or synchronized together, but I have to wonder if the author believes as opposed to knowing in a scientific way that he heart has some sort of cognitive power to actually communicate between sections of the heart. Or possibly the author had some sort of mechanical perspective and looked at the heart like to sprocket's connected together communicating as the teeth of the sprocket of the left side connected with teeth of the sprocket of the right side transferring information from one to the next like a Turing machine.

As I think about some of the odd things in this book, I even experienced the idle thought that maybe the author or editors might have been dipping into their own medicine like Sigmund Freud a little too much.  I have no idea how much drug abuse by physicians may have occurred one hundred years ago, but the diversion from fact into what might be described as fluffy filler, could possibly be explained by the presence of a drug addiction.  Addicts were prevalent 100 years ago even thought here were no drug rehabs. If people go help at all for their addictions, it might include a trip to a sanitorium or an alms house, but chances are this is all just speculation and incorrect in the assumption.

Additional Articles from the Book of Medicine:

  • Fleas

    Fleas.—There are one hundred varieties of this pest which live on dogs, cats, birds, squirrels, rats, mice, etc. It has been proven that fleas carry the germs of Bubonic Plague, which has caused as high as 113 deaths in 119 cases during an epidemic. The disease was found to be spread by means of rats, mice and squirrels of all species and the flea (pulen fasciatus) in the fur of the animals was the medium by which the disease was conveyed to human beings by biting them and injecting the germs of Plague into their blood.

    The forms which pester the American homes are the Rouse Flea (Pulen Irritans), the Cat Flea (Pulen Felinius), and the Dog Flea (Pulen Canis).

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    While we have made major advances in the treatment and prevention of fleas, the speed of their prevention as not advanced along a path like Moore’s Law where we see advances in computer chips and flash memory doubling on a regular basis.

    Each female flea deposits from eight to twelve whitish ovoid eggs in dust or lint, under carpets and the larger crevices of wood­work. In the summer they develop in about four weeks from the egg to the adult flea, in winter they develop in about six weeks. Four to six broods, as a rule are hatched out during each summer.

    The House Flea occurs in dwellings, breeding in bedding, clothing, carpets, window curtains, etc. They attack their victims at night. The Cat and Dog Flea, though they annoy only their respective victims, are as troublesome to human beings as the human flea.

  • Colon Cleanser on Public Health Forum

    Now I cover a lot of items that seem a little peculiar culturally speaking. Today, I happened across PublicHealthForums.com. One of their sub-forums is a Bowtrol Forum. People show up to the forum to get Bowtrol Reviews and try and decide whether or not they should Buy Bowtrol.

    Now I mention this because one of the people visiting the form asked the perfectly logical question:

    I have a question. I just ordered a two months supply. My husband is afraid to try the product during working hours. Will it cause discomfort during the day? Any cramping, diarrhea, or other extremes?

    That is definitely a reasonable question for a colon cleanser. Culturally speaking I wonder what people will think about this type of Social Networking in the future. In many ways the Library of Health is a book that published the accumulated medical knowledge of the time to distribute to people around the country. It was a codification of medical practices and possibly word of mouth knowledge and herbal lore even.

    Not so different than people coming together to work out a best practice solution for the usage of a medical product or treatment today.

  • Goitre in Switzerland

    Goitre in Switzerland. — Dr. Coindet, a Geneva Switzerland, asserts that Goitre is speedily produced in persons who drink the hard pump water in the lower parts of that town, whilst in other parts of Switzerland the use of spring water has been followed by the development of augmentation of Goitre in a very few days. In India also it has been shown conclusively to prevail, to any marked extent, only where the magnesium limestone rocks underlie the soil; but whether it is the line and magnesium salts or whether, as has been suggested, it is the presence of sulfide of iron and the bedrock formation, which is the direct cause of the development of Goitre, has not yet been positively determined. It appears certain however, that Goitre is originated by some water and purity, and that this contamination is of an inorganic and not of an animal or vegetable nature.

    So it would appear, that English not the only ones that were hung up on this magnesium and salt issue causing Goitre. They were frankly barking up the wrong tree, and here is yet another reference to an unknown Doctor.  For my new and make it to the fitness section of this book, it’s not follow any of the prescriptions for fitness nor consider constructing any of the fitness equipment. They couldn’t even figure out table salt after all. Our poor ancestors…

 

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