Skeletal evidence of the ethnic cleansing actions in the Free City of Danzig (1939-1942) based on the KL Stutthof victims analysis.

In the early days of World War II, many of the prominent and influential people of Polish nationality from the Free City of Danzig were arrested by the Germans and sent to the nearby concentration camp KL Stutthof. Nearly a hundred of them died within the next seven months upon their arrival, and were buried in a clandestine mass grave in a nearby forest. However, the exact nature of their death is unknown, as it is unclear what the attitude of the aggressors was toward the victims. We do not know whether there was only one executioner or there were several assassins, nor if the killing methodology was consistent with the other state-regulated executions. The studied material represents the commingled remains of a minimum thirty-four people, possibly all male, aged from under eighteen to over sixty at the time of death. Perimortem traumatic lesions are shown mainly on the skull bones. We asked whether the perimortem trauma lesions visible on the victims' skeletons could be informative on the cause and manner of their death. Our results show the prevalence of the perimortem trauma inflicted by a blunt object are on the parietal bones above the Hat Brim Line (HBL), which is commonly associated with a violent attack. The gunshot trauma was usually localized on the occipital bone or posterior parietal, which could indicate a shot to the back of the head, and this was commonly encountered during executions. No signs of defensive injuries can be explained either by restraining of the hands or by a surprise attack. The abundance and variability of the trauma type can be evident of multiple assailants. Moreover, the multiple impact points detected on several crania prove unnecessary overkill and brutality, which reflects the personal attitudes of the executioners towards the victims.

Immunisation used for offensive and defensive purposes during the Second World War.

The best defence against natural or intentional biological agents during armed conflict is usually immunisation, as with typhoid fever, but exceptional circumstances are informative. A large iatrogenic epidemic of hepatitis B occurred in 1942 due to contaminated lots of yellow fever (YF) vaccine used in the US military, even though there was no natural risk of infection. YF vaccine was intended to protect against Japanese Army's use of YF as a biowarfare agent, which did not eventuate. Salmonella typhi was used to infect German soldiers in a Paris café during Christmas 1941 in the knowledge that the café staff but not the soldiers were likely to be immunised against typhoid fever. German Army use of the Weil-Felix reaction to eliminate civilians likely to be typhus infected was subverted by Polish medical officers. They immunised civilians with locally produced Proteus antigens to create false-positive Weil-Felix reactions in order to exempt men from forced labour schemes. Immunisation against biowarfare agents has a mixed record, indicating that vaccines rarely cover well for intelligence gaps.

Human genetics in post-WWII Italy: blood, genes and platforms.

Italian Life sciences in post-WWII faced important challenges: the reconstruction of a scientific panorama suffering heavily after two decades of Fascism and the damages of war. Modernization was not only a matter of recreating a favorable environment for research, by modernizing Italian biomedical institutions and connecting the Italian scientists with the new ideas coming from abroad. The introduction of new genetics required a new array of concepts and instruments, but also, the ability to connect to international networks and to become active members of a broader scientific community. Because of the several socio-cultural issues involved (eugenics, racism, religion, politics), human genetics is a good case study in order to analyze how Italian life sciences managed the transition towards a new research system, and the influences Italian human geneticists received. The paper focuses primarily on the development of the early career of Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza, probably the most prominent scientist in post-WWII human genetics in Italy, and his friend and colleague Ruggero Ceppellini. In following their path, a healthy mix of local traditions and international stimuli emerges, allowing for the establishment-within and beyond national borders-of the discipline.

Immigration in Brazilian medical and psychiatric discourse in the post-Second World War period. / A imigração no discurso médico-psiquiátrico brasileiro no pós-Segunda Guerra Mundial.

The article analyzes the contributions of psychiatry to the debate on health and immigration in the post-Second World War, when Brazil received war refugees and displaced persons from Eastern Europe. The concern with mental disorders attributed to war traumas made mental health a topic of debate in the specialized press. From the analysis of medical articles published in the journals Arquivos Brasileiros de Higiene Mental and Arquivos Brasileiros de Neuriatria e Psiquiatria and in Revista de Imigração e Colonização, we seek to understand the relevance of immigration as a field in which psychiatrists took action and vied for legitimacy as authorities in the preparation of Brazil's immigration policies.

O artigo analisa as contribuições da psiquiatria no debate sobre saúde e imigração no período pós-Segunda Guerra Mundial, quando o Brasil recebeu refugiados e deslocados de guerra vindos do Leste Europeu. A preocupação com desordens mentais atribuídas aos traumas de guerra tornava a saúde mental tema de debate na imprensa especializada. A partir da análise de artigos médicos publicados nas revistas Arquivos Brasileiros de Higiene Mental e Arquivos Brasileiros de Neuriatria e Psiquiatria e na Revista de Imigração e Colonização , busca-se compreender a relevância da imigração como um campo de atuação e disputa por legitimidade dos psiquiatras no papel de autoridades na elaboração das políticas imigratórias brasileiras.

John Vivian Bingay OBE (1899-1973) and the New Cross School for Dental Auxiliaries.

It is easy to forget some of the people who helped to develop the dental care services. One person who should be remembered is Jack Bingay. He was a towering figure in the public dental services from just before to well after World War II. Jack was the first Director of the School for Dental Auxiliaries.

Las diversas caras de la enfermería durante el Nacionalsocialismo (1933-1945): una revisión narrativa / As várias faces da enfermagem durante o nacional-socialismo (1933-1945): uma revisão narrativa / he diverse faces of nursing during National Socialism (1933-1945): a narrative review

In a certain period in the history of nursing, the care and attention characteristic of theprofession coexisted with the ignorance and cruelty of a society corrupted by tragedy and hatredtowards the human being. Objective: to make known the role of the supporters of the Nazi party asnurses of the Allied side and of the resistance during National Socialism in Europe and expose thedifferences between the care they provided. Methodology: narrative review developed through thebibliographic search of books and articles in various databases, selected based on inclusion andexclusion criteria. Results: the nursing care of the time was strongly differentiated between twosides, where empathy and affection were replaced by abuse and barbarism. In addition, a type ofnursing has been discovered which was forced to help the National Socialist regime against its will.Conclusion: the actions of those nurses who worked during the time of Nazism have been reflected,for the current nursing can know what happened in the past to learn and improve for the future.(AU)

En un determinado período de la historia de la enfermería, los cuidados característicosde la profesión convivieron junto la ignorancia y la crueldad de una sociedad corrompida por latragedia, el miedo y el odio. Objetivo: dar a conocer tanto el papel de las enfermeras simpatizantesdel partido nazi como el de las enfermeras del bando aliado y de la resistencia durante el Nacionalsocialismo en Europa y exponer las diferencias entre los cuidados que prestaron. Metodología: revisión narrativa desarrollada a través de la búsqueda bibliográfica de libros y de artículos en diversas bases de datos, seleccionados a partir de unos criterios de inclusión y exclusión. Resultados: laatención enfermera de la época estuvo fuertemente diferenciada entre los dos bandos, dónde la empatía y el afecto se substituyeron por el maltrato y la barbarie. Además, se ha descubierto un tipode enfermería la cual se vio obligada a ayudar al régimen nacionalsocialista en contra de su voluntad. Conclusión: se han plasmado las actuaciones de aquellas enfermeras que trabajaron durante laépoca del nazismo, para que la enfermería actual pueda conocer lo que ocurrió en el pasado y mejorar de cara al futuro.(AU)

Num determinado período da história da enfermagem, o cuidado e a atenção característicada profissão coexistiam com a ignorância e a crueldade de uma sociedade corrompida pela tragédiae pelo ódio ao ser humano. Objectivo: dar a conhecer o papel dos apoiantes do partido nazi comoenfermeiros do lado aliado e da resistência durante o nacional-socialismo na Europa o expor as diferenças entre os cuidados que prestaram. Metodologia: revisão narrativa desenvolvida através dabusca bibliográfica de artigos em várias bases de dados, selecionados com base em critérios de inclusão e exclusão. Resultados: o cuidado de enfermagem do tempo foi fortemente diferenciado entreos dois lados, onde a empatia e o afeto foram substituídos por abuso e barbárie. Além disso, foidescoberto um tipo de enfermagem que foi forçada a ajudar o regime nacional-socialista contra suavontade. Conclusão: as ações das enfermeiras que trabalharam na época do nazismo foram reflectidas, para que a enfermagem atual possa saber o que aconteceu no passado para aprender e melhorarpara o futuro.(AU)

Frank B. Bicknell: Pioneer in Pediatric Urology and Founder of the American Urological Association History Forum.

OBJECTIVE: To explore and document the life and urologic contributions of Dr. Frank B. Bicknell. METHODS: We researched the life of Dr. Bicknell via his publications, archived documents from the Didusch Museum and through the description of his life and accomplishments by his colleagues including John K. Lattimer and Frank Hinman Jr. RESULTS: Frank B. Bicknell (1907-1999) attended the University of Michigan (1925-1928) and Universityof Michigan Medical School (1928-1932) prior to his internship and urology residency at the Receiving Hospital, Detroit, Michigan (1932-1936). He served in the Merchant Marine in the 1930s, sailing around the world. He was a major in World War II and served as Professor of Urology at Wayne State University. In 1951 Dr. Bicknell got together a small group of eight urologists interested in pediatric urology during the AUA Annual Meeting. Drs. Campbell, Barber, Johnson, Mertz, Hinman Jr., Spence and Lattimer all met in Dr. Bicknell's Chicago hotel room and would form The Society for Pediatric Urology. At the time, Dr. Bicknell's brother-in-law had just become president of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). Dr. John Lattimer with the help of Dr. Bicknell's brother-in-law was able to get a room at the AAP meeting which he filled with 2500 people, thought to be the largest collection of urologists in one room at the time. The success of the session led the AAP to develop a Section of Urology and impressed upon the AUA the magnitude of interest in pediatric urology. This allowed pediatric urologists to secure an exclusive session on the day before the main AUA meeting which has persisted since that time.Dr. Bicknell founded the History Forum in 1966 and chaired this very popular event during its first decade. The forum now occupies an entire afternoon during the AUA annual meeting, with papers presented on historic urologic topics. The highlight of this assembly is the annual lecture on the history of medicine. In 2000, this oration was renamed the Frank Bicknell History of Urology Oration to honor the founder of the History Forum. CONCLUSION: Dr. Frank Bicknell was an early leader in pediatric urology and urologic history who helped found The Society of Pediatric Urology and the AUA History Forum.

Prisoner of War Medical Ingenuity in Far East Captivity.

Research into British perspectives of the medical history of Far East prisoners of war (FEPOWs) has been conducted by the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (United Kingdom), resulting from decades of treating FEPOW veterans that began after their repatriation in late 1945. This paper examines some of the ingenious ways that British medical officers, medical orderlies, and volunteers fought to save the lives of thousands of FEPOWs during captivity in the Second World War. It highlights some of the key medical challenges, together with the resourcefulness of a "citizen's army" of conscripts and volunteers who used their civilian knowledge, skills, and ingenuity in many ways to support Allied medical staff. Using the most basic of materials, they were able to produce a vast array of medical support equipment and even drugs, undoubtedly saving many lives.

Medical Biography of Isak Samokovlija: The Famous Bosnian-Herzegovinian Writer.

The purpose of this paper is to shed light on the biographical, professional, and health-educational works of Dr. Isak Samakovlija, who was better known as a writer than a doctor in the country where he was born. He was born in 1889 in Gorazde, the easternmost province in the Austrian-Hungarian monarchy, into a modest Jewish merchant family. He attended high school in Sarajevo and completed his studies in medicine in Vienna in 1917. During the First World War, he served twice in the Austro- Hungarian army. After the end of the First World War in 1918, he completed a medical internship at the National Hospital in Sarajevo. He began his service as a doctor, first in Gorazde and then in Fojnica and Sarajevo. After the establishment of the Independent State of Croatia in May 1941, he was dismissed from his duties in the service without the right to pension or support, and without the right to appeal. In the Independent State of Croatia, he was twice mobilized into the Home Guard and was manager of the clinic in the Alipasin Most refugee camp. After World War II, he was the head of the Health Education Department of the Ministry of Public Health of the People's Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Sarajevo. Together with a group of enthusiastic doctors, he founded and edited the first Bosnian medical journal Zivot i Zdravlje (Life and Health). In that journal, Dr. Samokovlija published 29 articles of health and educational content. In 1949, Dr. Samokovlija left the Ministry of Public Health and continued to edit the literature and art journal Brazda, but he still had a private practice until the end of his life. He died in Sarajevo on January 15, 1955. He was buried with the highest state honors at the Jewish cemetery in Sarajevo. CONCLUSION: Isak Samakovlija (1889-1955) was one of the first medical doctors born in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He made a significant contribution to the improvement of people's health after the First and Second World Wars in the places where he worked. His special contribution are his articles on health education.

Selective mortality and fertility and long run health effects of prenatal wartime exposure.

Many previous studies have shown that prenatal exposure to adverse historical circumstances negatively affects long-run health. Most women who are pregnant during wars experience clearly adverse circumstances that are however not as harsh as the typically studied extreme episodes such as famines, combat and wide-scale destruction. We show that prenatal exposure to World War II (WWII) in five Western European countries did not lead to a population-wide poorer health among the elderly. We even find indications of a better than expected health. This is likely due to selective fertility and mortality. We attempt to quantify these selection effects and show that when taking them into account, the initially positively estimated health effects on almost all outcomes are substantially attenuated. Selective mortality and fertility likely occur in similar directions for many historical episodes of adversity. Our results therefore suggest that a part of the previous research on such exposures likely under estimated the true sizes of the long-run effects.

Medical experimentation on prisoners (part 1): historical milestones.

The exploitation of prisoners in medical research is an ancient phenomenon. However, the history of the XXth century was marked by major events that reached the peak of horror during the second world war. Although the collective mind has remembered the outrages of the Nazi regime, the truth is that these practices were adopted by the majority of the military powers of that time, and continued after the end of the war. This history note is the first in a series that aims to review the circumstances and implications of these dark moments in the history of medical research in order to pay tribute to the countless victims who paid with their lives for «scientific progress¼ and to understand the reasons for current ethical considerations in biomedical experimentation on persons deprived of liberty.

Theories and practices of psychoanalysis in central Europe immediately after World War II.

Shortly after World War II, psychoanalytic societies in Central Europe were gradually resuming their pre-war activities. Starting in 1945, Austria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia and Poland saw the revival of their psychoanalytic circles which subsequently engaged in psychoanalytic knowledge transmission, especially in the face of the Communist state institutions' growing disapproval of psychoanalysis. This article traces the history of the psychoanalytic movement's rebirth in Central Europe. The author discusses the activities of Viennese, Budapestian, Praguian and Varsovian circles post-1945 in order to examine the practices of collective thinking and identify diverse models of the transmission of Freudianism. The attempt to explore the complex mechanisms of psychoanalytic knowledge dissemination in the immediate post-war period, both in its theoretical and practical dimensions, can contribute to a more profound understanding of the history of psychoanalysis in Central Europe after 1945. It also points to the significance of a more inquisitive approach to the internal dynamics of these intellectual circles which were forced to develop outside of state academic institutions due to socio-political reasons.

[CIVIL HEALTHCARE IN EASTERN SIBERIA ON THE EVE AND AT THE BEGINNING OF THE GREAT PATRIOTIC WAR].

Eastern Siberia during the Great Patriotic War, being in the deep rear, was one of the key regions where the population and industrial enterprises were evacuated from the front-line zones and west territories of the USSR. Among the arriving population, there were many highly qualified specialists who were sent along with enterprises to resume their work, which, on the one hand, gave preconditions for the development of the region, including as a major industrial and scientific center in the future, but also created an additional burden on the civil health care system of the region "in the moment." Eastern Siberia provided the USSR with healthy human and necessary production resources, making it possible for the Soviet Army to defend the Motherland, which was the main thing in those difficult years, in the face of the sudden invasion of Nazi Germany. The archival materials that give an idea of ​​the state of the civil health care system in the region by the beginning and in the first days of the Great Patriotic War are analyzed, and a comparative analysis of the indicators of both the Eastern Siberia region and its individual republics with the RSFSR as a whole is carried out. This study was carried out as part of the research work "State policy in the field of health protection and medical science in the Russian Empire and the USSR."

Evolution of spinal cord injury treatment in military neurosurgery.

During the mid-1900s, military medicine made historical advancements in the diagnosis, stabilization, and treatment of spinal cord injuries (SCIs). In particular, World War II was an inflection point for clinical practice related to SCIs because of the vast number of devastating injuries to soldiers seen during World War I (WWI). The unprecedented rate of SCI along with growth in the field served as a catalyst for surgical and interdisciplinary advancements through the increased exposure to this challenging pathology. Initially, a tragic fate was assumed for soldiers with SCIs in WWI resulting in a very conservative approach strategy given a multitude of factors. However, soldiers with similar injuries 20 years later saw improved outcomes with more aggressive management interventions by specialists in spine trauma, who applied measures such as spinal traction, arthrodesis, and internal fixation, and with the significant developments in the complex rehabilitation of these patients. This article describes the historical shift in the management of SCIs through the two world wars. These historical lessons of SCI and the fundamental advances in their neurosurgical intervention have molded not only military but also modern civilian treatment of SCI.

A history of neurosurgical capabilities in the United States Pacific Command: from World War II to present.

Neurosurgery has benefited from innovations as a result of military conflict. The volume and complexity of injuries sustained on the battlefield require medical teams to triage, innovate, and practice beyond their capabilities in order to treat wartime injuries. The neurosurgeons who practiced in the Pacific Command (PACOM) during World War II, the Korean War, and the War in Vietnam built upon field operating room knowledge and influenced the logistics of treating battle-injured patients in far-forward environments. Modern-day battles are held on new terrain, and the military neurosurgeon must adapt. War in the PACOM uniquely presented significant obstacles due to geographic isolation, ultimately accelerating the growth and adaptability of military neurosurgery and medical evacuation. The advancements in infrastructure and resource mobilization made during PACOM conflicts continue to inform modern-day practices and provide insight for future conflicts. In this historical article, the authors review the development and evolution of neurosurgical care, forward surgical teams, and mobile field hospitals with surgical capabilities through US conflicts in the PACOM.

Neurosurgery during the Greco-Italian War (World War II): the management of war-related head injuries at the Italian field hospital of Sinanaj in Albania.

During the Greco-Italian War (World War II [WWII], 1940-1941), an Italian field hospital was set up in Sinanaj, Albania. The hospital's military surgeons carefully collected information about the characteristics and management of patients with war-related injuries. In 1942, they published a detailed report, with a section dedicated to the management of war-related head injuries. The aim of this report is to analyze that section, to describe the characteristics and neurosurgical management of war-related head injuries, and to depict the status of war neurosurgery in the Royal Italian Army during WWII. The analysis revealed that, during the Greco-Italian War (November 1940-April 1941), 149 patients with war-related head injuries were admitted to the Sinanaj hospital, and 48 patients underwent surgery. Head injuries were caused by bomb fragments in 126 patients, bullets in 5 patients, and other causes (falls from height, vehicle accidents, or rock fragments) in 18 patients. Six patients (12.5%) died after surgery. Before surgery, patients underwent resuscitation with blood transfusions and fluid. Preoperatively, a plain head radiograph was usually acquired to locate metallic and bone fragments. The surgical technique consisted of craniotomy or craniectomy, aggressive debridement of metallic and bone fragments, and watertight dural closure. Surgical drainage, overall aseptic technique, serial spinal taps, and perioperative antibiotics were used to prevent infections. The surgical aims and technique used by the Italian surgeons for the management of head injuries were similar to those of the Allied surgeons during WWII. Operative mortality was also comparable. Although the surgical technique for war-related head injuries has evolved since WWII, many aspects of the technique used by the Italian and Allied surgeons during WWII are still in the standard of care today.

Neurosurgical developments of Thierry de Martel (1875-1940), French neurosurgery pioneer, during World Wars I and II.

Following France's entry into World War I on August 3, 1914, Thierry de Martel (1875-1940), the French neurosurgery pioneer, served on the front line and was wounded on October 3, 1914. He was then assigned as a surgeon in temporary hospitals in Paris, where he published his first observations of cranioencephalic war wounds. In 1915, de Martel met Harvey Cushing at the American Hospital in Neuilly, where de Martel was appointed chief surgeon in 1916. In 1917, he published with the French neurologist Charles Chatelin a book (Blessures du crâne et du cerveau. Clinique et traitement) with the aim to optimize the practice of wartime brain surgery. This book, which included the results of more than 5000 soldiers with head injuries, was considered the most important ever written on war neurology at that time and was translated into English in 1918 (Wounds of the Skull and Brain; Their Clinical Forms and Medical and Surgical Treatment). In this book, de Martel detailed the fundamentals of skull injuries, classified the various craniocerebral lesions, recommended exploratory craniectomy for cranioencephalic injuries, recommended the removal of metal projectiles from the brain using a magnetic nail, and advocated for the prevention of infectious complications. Between the World Wars, de Martel undertook several developments for neurosurgery in France alongside neurologists Joseph Babinski and Clovis Vincent. Following France's entry into World War II on September 3, 1939, de Martel took over as head of the services of the American Hospital of Paris in Neuilly. He updated his work on war surgery with the new cases he personally treated. Together with Vincent, de Martel presented his new approach in "Le traitement des blessures du crâne pendant les opérations militaires" ("The treatment of skull injuries during military operations") on January 30, 1940, and published his own surgical results in April 1940 in "Plan d'un travail sur le traitement des plaies cranio-cérébrales de guerre" ("Work Plan on the Treatment of Cranio-Cerebral Wounds of War"), intended for battlefield surgeons. On June 14, 1940, the day German troops entered Paris, de Martel injected himself with a lethal dose of phenobarbital. Thierry de Martel played a central role in establishing modern neurosurgery in France. His patriotism led him to improve the management of wartime cranioencephalic injuries using his own experience acquired during World Wars I and II.