Epidemiological Isolation as an Infection Mortality Risk Factor in U.S. Soldiers from Late Nineteenth to Early Twentieth Centuries.

It remains uncertain why most infectious disease mortalities disappeared before modern medical interventions. Historical epidemiology using prospectively collected U.S. Army data from the Civil War (1860-1861), Spanish-American War (1898-1899), and First World War (1917-1918) suggests that epidemiological isolation was a major mortality risk factor for soldiers. Morbidity and mortality due to common infections decreased progressively from 1860 to 1918, except for influenza during the 1918 pandemic. Adult measles or mumps infections are indicative of isolated rural populations and correlated with disease mortality by U.S. state. Experiencing infections before adulthood may equip the immune system to better resist infections and decrease mortality rates.

Colonel B.K. Ashford, A Brief Military Medicine Historical Review.

Colonel (Col.) Bailey K. Ashford was a turn of the 19th century Army medical corps officer who made great contributions to military medicine in the areas of infectious disease, public health, and education. His service period spans from the Spanish American War to the early 1920s. Although not as well-known as some of his contemporaries, he is an important figure, contributing to the diagnosis and treatment of "new world hookworm" in the tropics, training medical units in World War I, and the creation of the Institute of Tropical Medicine.

Rheumatic disease in wartime: gouty generals in battles lost or won.

Leadership by a commander is an important determinant of military outcomes. This report describes 2 19th-century wars in which the commanding general was afflicted with severe, disabling gout. In the First Afghan War (1839-1942), the result was disastrous, but in the Spanish-American War (1898), subordinates ignored the general's orders and saved the day.

Dengue and US military operations from the Spanish-American War through today.

Dengue is a major cause of illness among travelers and a threat to military troops operating in areas to which it is endemic. Before and during World War II, dengue frequently occurred in US military personnel in Asia and the South Pacific. From the 1960s into the 1990s, dengue often occurred in US troops in Vietnam, the Philippines, Somalia, and Haiti. We found attack rates as high as 80% and periods of convalescence up to 3-1/2 weeks beyond the acute illness. The increase in dengue throughout the world suggests that it will remain a problem for military personnel until an effective vaccine is licensed.

Wound ballistics: Minié ball vs. full metal jacketed bullets--a comparison of Civil War and Spanish-American War firearms.

OBJECTIVE: The advent of the full metal jacketed bullet in the late nineteenth century was thought to cause less severe battlefield wounds. This study compares the wounding characteristics of a reproduction rifle from the American Civil War to one of the Spanish-American War using the wound profile method. METHODS: A 0.58 caliber rifled musket using Minié balls and a 0.30 caliber Krag-Jorgenson rifle using full metal jacketed bullets were fired into calibrated 10% ordnance gelatin blocks at a distance of 3 meters. Measured parameters included maximum temporary cavity, muzzle velocity, and the permanent track. RESULTS: Maximum temporary cavities were significantly larger using the musket, averaging 121 mm (+/- 5.4) vs. 38.6 mm (+/- 8.8) (p < 0.001). Bullet weights were also significantly larger, totaling 29.7 grams (+/- 1.3) for the musket vs. 14.18 grams (+/- 0.01) for the rifle (p < 0.01). Using grains, bullet weights were 458.3 grains (+/- 20 grains; range 435.2-486.1) vs. 218.8 grains (+/- 0.15; range 218.7-219). Muzzle velocities of the musket were significantly less when compared with the rifle, averaging 944 fps (+/- 116) vs. 1852 fps (+/- 22.5), respectively (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The rifled musket produced more severe wounds when compared to the Krag-Jorgenson rifle, as was clinically apparent to observers at the time of the Spanish-American War.

Margaret Shanks, nurse to Susan B. Anthony: exploring the extraordinary in the "ordinary" nurse.

This historical effort explores the life and professional practice of the relatively unknown nurse who attended the well-known suffragist Susan B. Anthony during the last months of her life. It examines nursing practice in the United States at the end of the 19th century through the life and voice of this nurse. The study affirms the value in social history of understanding ordinary lives and practice of nurses. It analyzes the professional, personal, and social interactions between nurse and patient that change each, all within a most significant historical, social, and political context.