Welcome
Medicine has impacted us all in one way or another. Whether you take a daily vitamin or just had a cold this past week and needed some pills to help you feel better. We definitely take all of these things for granted. Thanks to past scientists, doctors, and pharmacists, our medical field is blossoming today. The medicine today is very advanced especially in the United States and the future is looking even brighter.
1930s
The 1930s was the decade of firsts for many things. Research just started becoming a big thing. The first artificial pacemaker was invented by Albert S. Hyman. He was a practitioner cardiologist in New York City and by working with his brother Charles, they constructed a hand-cranked apparatus with a spring motor that turns a magnet to supply an electrical impulse. It was tested on several lab animals and at least one human patient before receiving a patent. In 1933 at John Hopkins University, William B. Kouwenhoven and neurologist Orthello Langworthy discovered that a low voltage shock can cause ventricular fibrillation, or arrhythmia. This can cause the heart to restore its normal rhythm. In the year of 1932, Armand Quick developed a Quick test for blood clotting. Two years later Royal Raymond Rife tests a cancer curing treatment by using radio waves on human patients. And finally, towards the end of the decade in 1938 Florence Seibert isolates and purifies tuberculin in the skin to test it for tuberculosis.
Narrative
This decade was definitely not remembered for its medical advancements. The Great Depression was the cause of that. Many people during this time suffered in terrible ways. Poverty was a problem for many. There was no fuel for the economy so no one was able to buy food or sanitary products. Mental illness was also a factor. People could not bear being poor and living in these types of conditions, therefore, suicide rates were very high. Also, because of the economy, medicine and research were not top priorities. There was hardly enough money to live, let alone conduct experiments and funding for research. This was mainly the only decade that had problems with money and medicine.
1940s
"Thanks to PENICILLIN... he will come home!" was a common saying during the 1940s. Alexander Flemming, a Scottish bacteriologist, discovered penicillin in 1928 when he discovered a certain kind of mold that killed bacteria. After this, scientists couldn't grow enough mold to make it into medicine. Then in 1941, two British scientists came to a U.S. Department of Agriculture laboratory in Illinois. They brought with them a powder made from a mold. It took awhile to get the mold to grow fast enough but it finally happened with a moldy cantaloupe! This strain was released to the drug companies and the production of penicillin took off. The sales sky rocketed from zero in 1941 to 21 billion units in 1943. Penicillin saved the lives of many war heroes and that is all thanks to a cantaloupe and some scientists!
Other advancements during this time included a pulmonary bypass and cortisone. The pulmonary bypass was introduced in 1944 by Helen Taussig and Alred Blalock to treat heart defects in babies. Then in 1948, Philip Hench and Edward Kendall used cortisone to treat patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
Other advancements during this time included a pulmonary bypass and cortisone. The pulmonary bypass was introduced in 1944 by Helen Taussig and Alred Blalock to treat heart defects in babies. Then in 1948, Philip Hench and Edward Kendall used cortisone to treat patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
Narrative
Without penicillin some of the veterans of war could have not lived to see this day. It helped during D-Day in 1944 and in every battle after that. This penicillin led to the animal form of the drug which helped farmers protect their livestock from infection and disease. After the war, research went into new "wonder drugs" similar to penicillin. Ancient diseases were being cured and it all started with this one drug.