The Poor Historians: Medical History Misadventures

We invited Jerry Landry, host of the exceptional Presidencies of the U.S. Podcast onto the show today to help us discuss the clandestine surgery at sea that was done on President Grover Cleveland in the late 1800's. It was kind of a big deal.

Listen to the end to hear a teaser on the upcoming Patron inspired TV show review. We'll talk about it after our bonus content with Jerry at the end of this episode.
Go check out the Presidencies of the United States Podcast wherever you get your podcasts & follow Jerry Landry's work via his social media links below:
Facebook: @presidencies
Twitter/X: @presidencies89
Instagram: @presidenciespodcast
Threads: @presidenciespodcast
Sources:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grover_Cleveland Wikipedia on Grover Cleveland, main article
2. https://lib.arizona.edu/hsl/materials/collections/secret-illness/cleveland University of Arizona website article on Cleveland’s surgery
3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdA5SPM3iWU PBS News Hour feature on the surgery
4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK441833/ Mohs Surgery
5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christina_Tosi Christina Tosi Wikipedia article, she’s an American treasure
6. https://muttermuseum.org/ Mutter Museum webpage
7. https://www.cancer.net/cancer-types/head-and-neck-cancer/risk-factors-and-prevention Cancer.net head and neck cancer risk factors and prevention
8. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5385680/ - Surgical cure rates (small study)
9. https://columbiasurgery.org/news/2015/12/10/president-grover-cleveland-had-deadly-secret Another account from Columbia Surgery

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With the success of "The Last of Us" show, we thought we'd take some time to look at historically important cases of fungal infection. We'll investigate a possible explanation for all those witch trials of yesteryear as well as a common childhood fungal infection that accounted for quite the degree of social upheaval in Victorian England.
Also, we'll have our first entry in Mike's mailbag segment. Tune in to see if he gets the question correct.
Full show notes on our website.
References:

1. https://microbialcell.com/researcharticles/2020a-kainz-microbial-cell/ overview of Fungal infections, Kainz et. al., 2020 (linked in BBC article)
2. https://www.bbc.com/news/health-64402102 BBC Health article about The Last of Us
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salem_witch_trials Wikipedia page on Salem Witch Trials
4. https://arstechnica.com/science/2019/07/study-zombie-ant-death-grip-comes-from-muscle-contractions-not-the-brain/ Ars Technica blog post on Cordyceps
5. https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2023/01/20/cordyceps-fungus-last-of-us-hbo/ WaPo article on climate change related to the show
6. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/a-brief-history-of-the-salem-witch-trials-175162489/#:~:text=The%20Salem%20witch%20trials%20occurred,accused%20and%20compensated%20their%20families Smithsonian Salem Witch Trials article
7. https://www.vox.com/2015/10/29/9620542/salem-witch-trials-ergotism Vox article on Ergotism in the trials
8. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3898692/ mirror neuron review article
9. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7975928/#:~:text=Herpes%20zoster%20(HZ)%2C%20a,%2C%20or%20varicella%2C%20in%20childhood St. Anthony’s Fire survey article

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK169210/ Ringworm Chapter, Fungal Diseases in the US and Britain 1850-2000

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History does have a way of repeating itself--at least in broad strokes. In this episode we'll discuss the first opiate crisis the U.S. ever suffered and do a bit of comparison to modern times. From opium, to morphine, to heroin, these substances have been a part of civilization for much longer than most realize.

If you or someone you know may be struggling with opiates or other addictive substances, SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) has a confidential 24/7, 365 hotline to call to start finding help:
1–800–662–HELP (4357)

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Sources:

Thomas DeQuincy

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/10/17/the-man-who-invented-the-drug-memoir

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_De_Quincey

Confessions of an English Opium Eater Book

https://www.sas.upenn.edu/~cavitch/pdf-library/DeQuincey_Confessions_and_Suspiria_1850.pdf

Successful Treatment of Opium Eaters. The New England journal of medicine. 1853;48:77-77.

https://go.exlibris.link/MQmYF19P

Other:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/inside-story-americas-19th-century-opiate-addiction-180967673/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrison_Narcotics_Tax_Act

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/002204267500500201?journalCode=joda

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opium

https://www.dea.gov/factsheets

https://www.ohsu.edu/historical-collections-archives/theres-cure-historic-medicines-and-cure-alls-america

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opium_den

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temperance_movement

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/heroin/etc/history.html

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It's probably popular knowledge that alcohol as a substance of use--and potential misuse--has been with humankind since our earliest days. In this episode, Dr. Mike explores the earliest references to alcohol and takes us through a tour of it's evolution alongside various cultures and eventual recognition as a poison that is capable of great harm. This includes an overview of early addiction treatment and some discussion of how alcohol affects human physiology.

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If you or someone you know may be struggling with alcohol, see the below references to start a search for treatment options.

SAMHSA's Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator: 1–800–662–HELP (4357)

Find treatment: https://findtreatment.gov/
Types of treatment available: https://alcoholtreatment.niaaa.nih.gov/what-to-know/types-of-alcohol-treatment
Self-assessment questionnaire: https://auditscreen.org/check-your-drinking

About Alcohol Use Disorder and Symptoms: https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/brochures-and-fact-sheets/understanding-alcohol-use-disorder

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References:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Short-term_effects_of_alcohol_consumption

https://247wallst.com/special-report/2019/09/10/how-much-beer-did-the-average-person-drink-in-every-state/

https://academic.oup.com/alcalc/article/35/1/10/142396?login=false

https://recovery.org/alcohol-addiction/history/

https://daily.jstor.org/a-brief-history-of-drinking-alcohol/

https://www.thoughtco.com/history-of-alcohol-a-timeline-170889

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PHPod Merch Store (t-shirts and other swag)
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#medicine #medicalhistory #history #historypodcast

Charles Darwin, the famous naturalist of the 19th century, was a big fan of collecting specimens. Some of those specimens would crawl around and feed on one's blood. In this episode we'll talk about the life of Darwin and the medical history of his death, considering that a fascinating infectious disease may have been a contributing factor.
Sources:
Historical Clinicopathological Conference:
-https://archive.hshsl.umaryland.edu/bitstream/handle/10713/6862/Darwin_2011.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
-https://archive.hshsl.umaryland.edu/bitstream/handle/10713/6862/Darwin_Article_Pharos_2011.pdf?sequence=3&isAllowed=y

Darwin’s Illness Theories
-https://www.nsh.org/blogs/philip-bryant/2020/12/18/charles-darwin-and-the-silent-assassin
-https://academic.oup.com/pmj/article/81/954/248/7031810
-https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/014107688407700715

Chagas Disease Overview
-https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6614205/
-https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/chagas

Chagas Nobel Controversy:
-https://www.scielo.br/j/mioc/a/DWL3mJHHN8BwgrQdP7d4vjg/

Darwin Biography:
-https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/charles-darwin/

Super Deep Dive into Chagas Immunology:
-https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3131057/
#Chagasdisease #charlesdarwin #darwin #medicalhistory #history #infectiousdisease

Support the show

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PHPod Merch Store (t-shirts and other swag)
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Podcast Linktree (social media links / reviews / ratings)
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#medicine #medicalhistory #history #historypodcast