“Osler Warned”: Was William Osler a Grave Robber While at McGill or Was He a Victim (or Perpetrator) of One Final Practical Joke?

Bodysnatching was an illegal way to procure cadavers for anatomical dissection before the existence of effective anatomy legislation. As knowledge of anatomy was fundamental to medical practice, many famous nineteenth century physicians turned a blind eye to this activity or even participated. Sir William Osler, perhaps the most revered physician of all time, received his medical degree from McGill University in 1872 and then served as pathologist at Montreal General Hospital from 1874 to 1884, where he began a career which culminated in him becoming both the first Professor of Medicine at Johns Hopkins and then Regius Professor at Oxford. Quebec had been slow to enact effective anatomy legislation, and most of the cadavers in the McGill anatomy laboratory were resurrected; Osler's close friend and Anatomy Demonstrator Francis Shepherd was convicted of this offence on several occasions. In 1940, a letter was discovered in the archives at the McGill's William Osler Library, purportedly written in 1880, accusing Osler of being a grave robber while in Montreal. My paper dissects the letter to assess its credibility in the historical context of Osler's early life and the fact that Osler was a lifelong notorious practical joker with his own pseudonym, Dr. Egerton Yorrick Davis, who helped with his pranks. The provenance of the letter is analyzed and the paper explores, using historical context and forensic handwriting analysis, whether this letter is a revenge‐motivated practical joke played on him by one of his famous colleagues or represents Osler's last practical joke for posterity. Clin. Anat. 31:632–640, 2018. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

The Story of the Texas Pain Society: Formation and Function of a Regional Pain Society

Abstract: The idea of forming a Texas Pain Society came to the Founders in 1987 due to disparity and deficiencies in the practice of pain management in the United States and, in particular, the State of Texas. The Founders considered very carefully the implication of forming such a society. They diligently mapped out the mission and goals of the Texas Pain Society in those early formative years. This report is the history of Texas Pain Society as the activities unfolded from 1989 to 2011. The reader may question why there is a need to tell such a story. We believe strongly that, with disparities of standards of practice in pain medicine and poor recognition of advances in pain management, this scenario is quite common in many states and countries. The practitioners of pain management in these regions certainly must have considered getting together and forming a consensus on the standards of practice in their communities. This historical report of the Texas Pain Society provides the relevant information necessary and the efforts to be made for a society’s mission to achieve its goals and have an ongoing impact in its own region. We hope that we have shed some light on a process for the formation of a regional pain society such as ours. ?     

Toxicology of Selenium and Tellurium and Their Compounds

Measurements of blood flow to finger, calf and toe segments, and changes in pulmonary blood pulse volume were obtained using a four-electrode impedance plethysmograph in healthy male smokers. Results of cardiac output changes during cigarette smoking using the impedance system were compared with the indocyanine green (Cardio-Green) dye dilution method of measurement. Smoking two cigarettes in succession resulted in a 10% increase in blood pressure, 31% increase in pulse rate, 2% to 6% decrease in skin temperatures of fingers and toes, a 45% to 50% decrease in blood flow to fingers and toes, and a 28% decrease in pulmonary blood pulse volume. Duplicate measurements of cardiac output by dye dilution studies resulted in an increase followed by a decrease. This is compared with a consistent decrease measured by impedance techniques despite an increase in pulse rate. Results of comparative cardiac output studies suggest that cigarette smoking may affect the pulmonary circulation in a more consistent and different manner than the systemic circulation.