Tag: contagious disease

From Variolation to Cowpox Vaccination: The First Steps Towards Eradicating Smallpox

May 2, 2014

Edward Jenner looms large in the history of vaccination.  Known today as the “father of immunology,” Jenner is most famous for developing a vaccine against smallpox in the 1790s.  The vaccine brilliantly made use of common knowledge.  Milkmaids were known for having noticeably clear and smooth skin.  They had, it seemed, managed to develop an immunity to smallpox by suffering (and surviving) a bout of the much milder cowpox. … More From Variolation to Cowpox Vaccination: The First Steps Towards Eradicating Smallpox

A Fighting Chance: Disease, Public Health, and the Military, Part 3

October 8, 2013

From a medical point of view the two military campaigns to capture the Dutch island of Walcheren – the first in 1809, the second in 1944 – could not have been more different. The 1809 British expedition was ravaged by disease, a lethal combination of malaria, typhus, typhoid fever, and dysentery that infected over 60% of the force, killed over 4,000 soldiers, and left tens of thousands as casualties. … More A Fighting Chance: Disease, Public Health, and the Military, Part 3

Reflections on Friendly Fire

July 11, 2012

Friendly Fire is a project developed by the Agnes Etherington Art Centre in collaboration with the Museum of Health Care engaging the power of the artist as a story teller and synthesizer. The artist, Howie Tsui investigated health and medicine during the war of 1812. The resulting exhibition illuminates the brutal conditions of the body in war and the medical techniques of the period. … More Reflections on Friendly Fire

Raising Awareness about Tuberculosis – World TB Day, 24 March 2012 Pt. 2

March 23, 2012

Many people in the West have never thought about tuberculosis as a risk to their health.  Tuberculosis is often considered to be a disease of the past. In other locations around the world tuberculosis is a dangerous epidemic that affects thousands of people and their communities. 1.7 million people died from TB in 2009.  … More Raising Awareness about Tuberculosis – World TB Day, 24 March 2012 Pt. 2

Raising Awareness about Tuberculosis – World TB Day, 24 March 2012 Pt. 1

March 23, 2012

Tuberculosis is caused by an infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis, rod-shaped bacteria that are spread mostly through air-born droplets or dust micro-particles of dried sputum.Those who develop active pulmonary tuberculosis experience a range of signs and symptoms, including chest pain, cough, weight loss, pallor, fever, and night sweats. … More Raising Awareness about Tuberculosis – World TB Day, 24 March 2012 Pt. 1