Scientific Illustration

biomedicalephemera:

Venereal diseases (Sexually Transmitted Diseases) commonly seen in enlisted men - often mistakenly diagnosed as syphilis

While the treatments for all venereal diseases were pretty horrible back in the day (except for herpes - they at least realized that they couldn’t do anything for it, in most practices), the “treatment” for syphilis was usually far worse than the others.

Mercury was taken orally in various compounds, and was rubbed into the open sores. Arseno-benzene (an active compound to deliver arsenic) was often injected directly into the penis, and taken orally (for both men and women).

Complicating things, many venereal and other contagious diseases can mimic the symptoms of primary syphilis. Two of these three men did not have syphilis, but had been initially diagnosed and treated for it. The third actually had syphilis, but was initially treated for scabies.

Top left: Syphlitic leucoderma (“white skin”) of the penis - Initially diagnosed as scabies.
Top right: Long-standing scabies infection, where the sores mimicked syphilitic chancres (patient also has gonorrhea)
Bottom: Herpes genitalia of the penis. Diagnosed by untrained physician as syphilis. Not commonly confused with other conditions.

Venereal Disease: Their Clinical Aspect and Treatment. J. E. R. McDonagh, 1921.

biomedicalephemera:

Acute Osteomyelitis - Historically known as “Bone Fever”

Osteo-: Bone
-myelo-: Marrow
-itis: Fever

Top: Acute supperative osteomyelitis in femur - note the purulent cavities and pus-filled medullary canal at A, B, and C. In this case, the epiphysis (E) and conjunctive cartilage (D) are uninfected.
Center Left: Acute osteomyelitis of tibia, cicatrices showing common position of sinuses in bone.
Center Right: Acute epiphysial separation due to osteomyelitis following typhoid fever.
Bottom: Early stage of acute osteomyelitis in tibia. Note site “A” - where the infection passed from the periosteum to the interior of the bone. The articular cartilages (C) are sodden with pus from the infected joint.

Acute osteomyelitis is most commonly seen in children and those with diabetes. It is rarely “spontaneous” - the bacteria that infect the subperosteum and marrow have to be introduced into the bloodstream somehow, and there is usually a known source.

Systemic infection or traumatic injury are the most common ways that bacteria (today, most commonly Staphylococcus aureus) can get to the bones. Historically, scarlet fever (caused by group A Streptococcus pyogenes) and typhoid fever (Salmonella typhi) were known to cause a large number of osteomyelitis cases in their wake.

When children develop osteomyelitis, the long bones of the body (the femur, humerus, etc.) are most often affected, whereas the spine and pelvis are most commonly affected in adults. This is because there is much greater bloodflow to the growing long bones in kids, and as such there’s much more opportunity for bacteria in the blood to infect the site.

Early symptoms of what used to be called “bone fever” are fever and bone pain (as one might assume), as well as local warmth and swelling, and an overall malaise. The bone infection usually presents after a patient appears to have recovered from a disease or wound, as it takes several days to become established enough to cause symptoms. Later on, if left untreated, extreme pain and open, often purulent, wounds above the infection may occur, as the bacteria bore canals through the affected bones.

Without treatment, osteomyelitis can lead to sepsis, complete breakdown of affected bones, or gangrene.

Today, the condition is usually treated with long-term, high-dosage, IV antibiotic therapy. If it’s not caught at the start of the infection, debridement of the bone (removing the infected tissue) may be required, and in extreme cases, bone resection (cutting out an entire chunk of infected bone) or amputation may be required. Prior to antibiotics, resection was the most common cure.

Diseases of the Bones, their pathology, diagnosis, and treatment. Thomas Jones, 1887.

libertasacademica:

Figure 2 B from ‘Computational Characterization of Surface-Associated Binding Interaction of Alpha-Enolase of Trichomonas vaginalis with Human Plasminogen’ Published in Human Parasitic Diseases

factstofigures:

Caption: Nassarius pygmaeus. Effect of larval trematode infestation on penis morphology in adult males (shell removed). 1: Healthy individual with normal penis; 2: individual showing penis reduction typical of developing trematode infestation; 3: individual with highly reduced penis typical of Type III infestation.

Artist: Koie, 1975

Kinne, O. (Ed.). (1980). Diseases of Marine Animals. Chicester: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

xo-skeleton:

Robert Carswell, “Neoplasms of the breast, pancreas, lung, uterus and stomach” from Pathological Anatomy.

biomedicalephemera:

Bacteriologic Chart

1. Gonococcus spp.
2. Pneumococcus spp.
3. Streptococcus pyogenes
4. Micobacterium tuberculosis
5. Vibrio cholerae
6. Corynebacterium diphtheriae
7. Bacterium typhosum
8. Bacterium dysenteriae
9. Achorion Schonleinii [favus fungus]
10. Bacillus anthracis
11. Bacillus aerogenes capsulatus
12. Yeast cells - With buds and ascospores depicted

Deadly diseases are almost pretty, when stained and smeared on a microscope slide…

Postmortem Pathology. Henry W. Cattell, 1906.

libertasacademica:

Figure 5A from ‘Chaperone Therapy for Neuronopathic Lysosomal Diseases: Competitive Inhibitors as Chemical Chaperones for Enhancement of Mutant Enzyme Activities’ Published in Perspectives in Medicinal Chemistry

decaturjim:

Explore The Human Microbiome

The human microbiome refers to all of the microbial organisms that reside in the body including bacteria, fungi, and archaea.  Notably, the human body contains over 10 times more microbial cells than human cells.

To illustrate the diversity of these ‘body bugs’, Scientific American have profiled this impressive, interactive map of the key microorganisms commonly identified in the human body and their predominant location.

Interest in the human microbiome has increased in recent years, following reports that the type and number of microorganisms seem to play a role in the onset of several medical conditions including obesity, cancer, and diabetes. 

(via freshphotons)

biomedicalephemera:

Lupus Erythematosus

The autoimmune disease known as lupus is most commonly found in women of childbearing age (15-35), but has the potential to affect anyone. It’s also known as “the great imitator”, as the symptoms that people experience can mimic many other diseases and conditions.

The most common form of lupus, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), is often more easy to diagnose than other forms of the disease - it produces a very distinct “butterfly” rash over the cheeks and nose in over 90% of cases. Though many  people with lupus live regular and long lives these days, it wasn’t always that way. The effects of the autoimmune attacks on the heart, liver, and kidneys tended to kill patients within 10 years after diagnosis, and within a much shorter time span in those who had severe manifestations of the condition.

A Treatise on the Diseases of the Skin. Henry W. Stelwagon and Henry Kennedy Gaskill, 1923.

fuckyeahmolecularbiology:

A 3D illustration of HIV.

Source: labspaces.net.

(via amolecularmatter)