[Gustaw Giemsa (1867-1948)--his universal method of microscopic dying and his contribution for tropical medicine and chemotherapy]. / Der Oberschlesier Gustav Giemsa (1867-1948), seine universelle mikroskopische Färbemethode und seine tropenmedizinischen sowie chemotherapeutischen Verdienst.

Giemsa was born on 20th November 1867 as a son of a foundry worker in Blachownia Slaska near Slawiecice in Upper Silesia ("Blechhammer bei Slawentzits"). His baptism certificate was found in "Taufbuch der Pfarrkirche Slawentzitz 1865-1875, Fol. 278, No.236." All the data collected indicate he was true to his land of Opole. He studied in Leipzig, later in Berlin. Between 1895-1898 he worked in South East Africa, at the time the German colony. From 1900 till 1933 Giemsa was a head of the Chemical ward of the Tropical and Maritime Diseases Institute in Hamburg with which he was connected all his life. He also travelled much and spent some time at Instituto Oswaldo Cruz in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. Giemsa's most important achievement was his method of dying. It is an important development of Romanowski's method and became important itself in research of tropical diseases of blood. Gustaw Giemsa accurately labelled dyes that appear at so-called ripening of methyl blue. He worked out technical details of obtaining asure-eozine mixture. The formulae for fying could be applied in swabs of a thick blood drop and in everyday procedures. Giemsa also recognised the walue of water PH used for dying and means for closing microscope preparations under a covering glass. Giemsa's dying method turned out to be applicable in protozoology, parasitology, haematology and cytology. In oncological cytology Giemsa's dying method is becoming more and more popular due to its technical simplicity. ...

[The Dominican Nicholas of Poland as a mediaeval poet, philosopher and doctor]. / Dominikanin Mikolaj z Polski jako sredniowieczny poeta, filozof i medyk.

The person of Nicholas of Poland, living on the turn of the 13th century, has a documentary evidence in the so called Thraska chronicle, the preserved opuscules and in the document of some dukes of Poland from the years between 1271 to 1316. Nicholas was a friar of the order of Dominicans and achieved his education in Montepellier. In his poem entitled Antipocras, Nicholas of Poland for the first time expressed the point of view, that successful therapy may be possible, despite our ignorance about the real cause of illness. Nicholas expressed himself against Hipokrates and Galenus and also throwed off the standard urinoscopy. Nicholas payed attention to the fact, that not only precious medicines, but simple remedies may be effecacious in therapy. The opuscule Experimenta consists in a collection of prescriptions for preparation and application of different medicines. Nicholas of Poland was an advocate of remedies produced from snakes and amphibians. The surgical opuscule entitled Cyrurgia is the first writing and manual on surgery of Poland. It contents very interesting observations, especially about fistulas and cancer. This opuscule links to the so called snake therapy too. The Dominican Nicholas is the first in historical sources mentioned surgeon of Poland, who achieved high school education. The connections between Nicholas of Poland and the person and the court of the Duke Lestco Niger are documentary well foundated.

[Dr Albert Nigritius, 16 c. physician from Plock epitaph in Biecz parish church]. / Epitafium doktora Alberta Nigritiusa, XVI-wiecznego lekarza z Plocka, w kosciele parafialnym w Bieczu.

The present abstract deals with an epitaph of dr. Albert Nigritius 16 c. physician from Plock. Nigritius enrolled in Cracow University in 1560 as Albert Czarnawsky, son of Stefan. The wooden renaissance epitaph with two Latin inscription and paintings of an unknown artist can be seen in Corpus Christi Church at Biecz in southern Poland.

[1901 Slawiecice Lung Hospital and Goetsch and Robert Koch testing on tuberculine]. / Szpital plucny w Slawiecicach z 1901 roku oraz slawiecickie badania Goetscha i Roberta Kocha nad tuberkulina.

In 1884 count Hohenlohe August Hospital at Slawiecice (Slawentzitz) was opened. The first head of the hospital was privy councellor dr Goetsch. Basically the hospital was of a general nature yet its patients came mainly from the staff of Hohenlohe-Oehringen estate. However Goetsch was interested first of all in TP the tuberculine testing. His research made the Slawiecice hospital famous. In the early 90-ties of the 19 c. he succeeded in getting Robert Koch to cooperate. A number of tuberculin inoculations took place at Slawiecice. Testing done on Duke Hohenlohe-Oehringen's cattle aroused considerable interest at home and abroad. Tuberculine testing fame influenced the Duke who donated a special centre for consumptive people (Lugenheilanstalt). Naturally it meant TB at the time was one of the very serious diseases of circulatory system. The centre remained an integral part of the Duke's hospital. The newly built centre, had special areas for deck chairs, climatic treatment and isolation of the sick. The surrounding woodlands drew the patients and helped the development of the lung centre. The Centre for Treatment of Lung Diseases at Slawiecice was one of the earliest of its kind within the borders of the then Prussia--Germany and all over the world. The scientific co-operation of Goetsch and Koch lasted till 1903 that is the former's death. An agreeable situation, the Duke's donations, the illness of his family member, the fame of Koch and the interest and tests of Goetsch all added up to setting up the hospital which has survived the two world wars and silesian uprisings. It took a century to change a panorama of lung diseases: in the first half of the 20 c. it was TB at present it is lung cancer, immunological diseases and anthracosis.