THE HEALTH SYSTEM OF THE FIRST CZECHOSLOVAK REPUBLIC AND ITS ROLE IN COMBATING CONTAGIOUS DISEASES IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE FIRST WORLD WAR (THE 1920s)

A complex epidemiological situation marked the health system at the time of the establishment of the Czechoslovak Republic. Reducing the number of infectious diseases was an essential task of the State Administration of Health. It required new legislation and various steps directed at reducing infectious diseases. Serious infectious diseases, such as scarlet fever, diphtheria, typhoid, dysentery, smallpox, and malaria, were among the most significant health problems in Czechoslovakia. In 1920, Act No. 412 Coll. regarding compulsory smallpox vaccination was issued, as well as government Regulation No. 298, which describes vaccination obligations and stipulated proper isolation of patients with infectious diseases. Other steps that led to improvements included establishing the National Institute of Health and mobile disinfectant units. Conclusion: The systematic development of new legislation contributed to the new Republic's proficiency at the task and the gradual reduction in the number of infectious diseases.

OSTEOPOROSIS FROM YESTERDAY TO TODAY ­ A NARRATIVE REVIEW

Despite different lifestyles, humankind has suffered from osteoporosis for thousands of years. A literature review concerning the history of osteoporosis in the following databases: Index Medicus, Medline, PubMed, and PMC Citations was done. In the final analysis, 18 review articles and 31 original papers were included. The works were published during the period 1705-2020. Although there is evidence of the existence of osteoporosis for many centuries, it was first described as a disease at the beginning of the 18th century. It was first perceived as an unavoidable course of aging with no possibility to cure. This approach changed only in the 20th century thanks to sudden diagnostic and therapeutic progress. This paper presents the milestones and most important researchers in osteoporosis history. Rapid progress in diagnostic and therapeutic possibilities sheds new light on osteoporosis' nature. A comprehensive outlook on its history may help find answers for the still unsolved problems of this disease.

[The significance of ideas and first experiences of A. A. Bogdanov for development of transfusiology in Russia].

The article considers the period of becoming of transfusiology in the USSR that fell on times of the First World War, the October Revolution, the Civil War and scrambling for power of various political forces. This scramble resulted in victory by forces that did not consider A. A. Bogdanov as an ideological enemy. It allowed him, already withdrew from political activity, to develop and to embody his concept of blood transfusion even in conditions of shortage of resources. The development of theory of A. A. Bogdanov from his early literary works to first experiments with blood transfusion is demonstrated. He carried out these experiments jointly with like-minded persons in conditions of the "underground" and active discussion at the highest state level necessity of establishing special Institute of blood transfusion in the country. Particular biographical information demonstrating ability of man to sacrifice oneself in searching the Truth are presented. The 2023 is the year of one hundred fiftieth birthday and the ninety fifth death anniversary (the death resulted from failed experience on oneself) of A. A. Malinovsky (Bogdanov) - the revolutionary, psychiatrist, politician, philosopher and man of letters.

Management of combat-sustained radial nerve injury during World War I: The case of Louis-Ferdinand Céline.

The radial nerve conveys sensory and motor information to and from the upper limb, and radial nerve injury can induce functional disability, as demonstrated by the case of the renowned French writer Louis-Ferdinand Céline (1894-1961), who sustained a gunshot injury to his right arm in October 1914. Radial nerve injuries treated during World War I inspired the publication of several medical handbooks and medical theses, such as that of the military surgeon Major Robert Bretton (1889-1956). The aim of this paper is, via Céline's injury, to explore the management of radial nerve injury during and since World War I. It is important to consider the historical perspective in order to improve radial nerve injury management so as to adapt to modern warfare.

Why Did Black Soldiers Historically Have More Pneumonia Than White Soldiers in the U.S. Army?

Black U.S. Army soldiers had four times as much bacterial pneumonia as White U.S. Army soldiers during both the U.S. Civil War and World War I (WWI). Pneumonia case fatality rates were a third greater in Black soldiers during the U.S. Civil War, but were the same between the racial groups by WWI. During WWII, the use of antibiotics decreased bacterial pneumonia mortality rates 100-fold and apparently erased racial differences. Similar differences in bacterial pneumonia rates by racial group were observed in African colonial soldiers of the French and British Armies during WWI. Pneumonia rates in Indian, Filipino, and Puerto Rican soldiers suggested that genetic polymorphisms were not a decisive factor determining Black pneumonia mortality. Postmeasles pneumonias did not suggest an immune deficit in Black soldiers. Geographic focus of pneumonia in Black soldiers from the southern U.S. states and other tropical regions raises the possibility that increased bacterial pneumonia rates were related indirectly to malaria infections. Malaria remains a difficult-to-measure but potentially important mortality risk factor in pneumonia.

Neurosurgical management of penetrating brain injury during World War I: A historical cohort.

During World War I, 25% of penetrating injuries were in the cephalic region. Major Henri Brodier described his surgical techniques in a book in which he reported every consecutive penetrating brain injury (PBI) that he operated on from August 1914 to July 1916. The aim was to collate his data and discuss significant differences in management between soldiers who survived and those who died. We conducted a retrospective survey that included every consecutive PBI patient operated on by Henri Brodier from August 1914 to April 1916 and recorded in his book. We reported medical and surgical management. Seventy-seven patients underwent trepanation by Henri Brodier for PBI. Regarding injury mechanism, 66 procedures (86%) were for shrapnel injury. Regarding location, 21 (30%) involved the whole convexity. Intracranial venous sinus wound was diagnosed intraoperatively in 11 patients (14%). Postoperatively, 7 patients (9%) had seizures, 5 (6%) had cerebral herniation, 3 (4%) had cerebral abscess, and 5 (6%) had meningitis. No patients with abscess or meningitis survived. No significant intergroup differences were found for injury mechanism or wound location, including the venous sinus. Extensive initial surgery with debridement must be prioritized. Infectious complications must not be neglected. We should not forget the lessons of the past when managing casualties in present-day and future conflicts.

[Beyond the trenches, two German pioneers of plastic surgery]. / Au-delà des tranchées, deux pionniers allemands de la chirurgie plastique.

Cosmetic and reconstructive surgery has existed in many forms since antiquity, but it was the impulse given by the Great War that gave birth to plastic and cosmetic surgery as we know it today. After the Great War, the names of the most famous pioneers of the allies' side are Sir Harold Gillies, Mac Indoe and also Hippolyte Morestin; however, the surgeons of the enemy axis, beyond the trenches, faced the same constraints with their own war casualties. We present the destinies of two great pioneers of plastic surgery within the beautiful German Bismarckian period: Professor Erich Lexer, and "non-professor" Jakob Joseph.

Surviving the Deluge: British servicemen in World War I.

We estimate the correlates of death and injury in action during the First World War for a sample of 2400 non-officer British servicemen who were born in the 1890s. Among these 13.1% were killed in action and another 23.5% were wounded. Not surprisingly we find that the probability of death or wounding increases with time in the army and was higher among infantrymen. For a serviceman who enlisted in the infantry at the beginning of the war and continued in service, the probability of being killed in action was 29% and the probability of being either killed or wounded in action was 64%. We examine, for ordinary soldiers, the hypothesis that death and injury was more likely for those from higher socioeconomic backgrounds as is suggested in the literature on the 'lost generation'. While such selectivity applies when comparing officers with other ranks it does not apply among the ordinary soldiers who comprised 95% of the army.

Mortality among those certified under lunacy legislation in Scotland during World War I.

Mortality in asylum populations increased during World War I. This paper seeks to analyse the mortality data from Scotland, where governmental statistics allow comparison between different lunacy institutions, poorhouses and prisons, as well as people certified under lunacy legislation but living in the community. Detailed study is made of two Lothian asylums, the Royal Edinburgh Asylum and the Midlothian and Peebles District Asylum, and the 1918 influenza pandemic is considered in the asylum context. Similarities and differences between the situation in Scotland and that in England and Wales are discussed, and parallels are drawn with the Covid-19 pandemic in Scotland.

Getting Into One's Skin: The History of Skin Autografting.

Surgeons who treat and manage complex wounds rely on many techniques and modalities to properly close their wounds. In modern times, the concept of the reconstructive ladder helps practitioners make decisions on which method to employ to create the best result. Skin autografting is a part of that algorithm, but few know of the arduous history of this field. Dating back thousands of years ago, the history of skin autografting is complex and spans several continents and eras. This article discusses the history and nuance of a surgical technique that has had years of refinement. The discussion begins with ancient times and delves into how skin autografting made a resurgence during the renaissance and the late 1800s and the influence that World War I posed on the advancement of this surgical principle.

Emil Kraepelin as a historian of psychiatry - one hundred years on.

This article reviews Emil Kraepelin's address 'Hundert Jahre Psychiatrie', at the opening of the Deutsche Forschungsanstalt für Psychiatrie in 1917, and published as an essay in 1918. Kraepelin's publication represents a part of his late work: his commitment as a historian of psychiatry. He composed a classic narrative of psychiatric progress, which includes an outlook on desirable future developments in therapy and prevention. The present article considers the essay's socio-historical context as well as its structure and content. The focus lies on its time of origin around the end of World War I, its sources in relation to the state of the art of historiography at that time and the history of its reception, including the English-language edition of 1962.

George Stephen Penny (1885-1964): his life and medical encounters before, during and after admission to Broadmoor Criminal Lunatic Asylum.

Amid extensive press coverage, George Stephen Penny (1885-1964) was tried for murder in 1923. He was found 'guilty but insane' due to 'confusional insanity' associated with malaria which he suffered during World War I. Penny was admitted to Broadmoor Criminal Lunatic Asylum at a time of great public concern about inadequate and cruel care in mental institutions, but he was treated with humanity and respect. Penny's story also reveals much about challenges of psychiatric diagnosis and the relationships between crime, insanity, the public, lawyers and the medical profession. Following discharge from Broadmoor, Penny built himself a life in the community. His pseudonymous memoir, with masterly concealment of his identity and crime, tells his story up to 1925.

El pabellón de oficiales (2001) Heridas faciales en la primera guerra mundial / The Officers ́ Ward (2021): Facial Wounds during First World War

Adrien Fournier; un joven teniente francés de ingenieros es herido por uno de los primeros obuses de la Primera Guerra Mundial. Aunque sobrevive, presenta unas importantes lesiones en cara y cavidad oral por lo que es trasladado a un hospital de Paris. En el pabellón de oficiales del hospital, hay otros soldados con importantes heridas faciales. En la película se refleja el miedo al rechazo social, los intentos de suicidio, la labor de las enfermeras y del cirujano, así como la camaradería y el apoyo entre pacientes. (AU)

Adrien Fournier; A young French lieutenant of engineers, is wounded by one of the first bombs of the First World War. Although he survives, he has important injuries to his face and oral cavity for which he is transferred to a hospital in Paris. In the officers' ward of the hospital, there are other soldiers with significant facial injuries. The film reflects the fear of social rejection, suicide attempts, the work of the nurses and the surgeon, as well as the camaraderie and support among patients. (AU)

[The Constituent and Second Sessions of the General Meeting of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences (1944-1945) and tasks of the Soviet medicine in post-war period].

The article presents the materials of the 1st and 2nd sessions of the General Meeting of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences (1944 and 1945). The comparative analysis of main tasks set at these sessions for the Soviet medical science and practical public health is implemented. It is demonstrated that if the 1st session of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences (December 20-22, 1944) was devoted, in addition to organizational tasks, to formulation of main directions in development of fundamental (morphology, physiology, biochemistry, etc.), and practical (surgery, therapy, obstetrics, etc.) medicine, then at the 2nd session (October 28 - November 2, 1945) scientists and medical workers of the USSR were tasked to eliminate sanitary consequences of the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945) and to restore health of population of the country.

[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."

The 44th Medical Brigade in the Great War: Vietnam, 1966-Activation, Deployment, and Initial Operations.

In 1950, Congress changed the name of the Army Medical Department (AMEDD) to the Army Medical Service (AMEDS) as part of the Army Organization Act of 1950. In March 1968, at the urging of Army Surgeon General Leonard D. Heaton, then in his ninth year of service as the Surgeon General, Secretary of the Army Stanley R. Resor petitioned Congress to restore the name of the Army Medical Service to the Army Medical Department, and Congress approved the restoration of the department's name in June 1969.

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.

Lost Lessons of the 1918 Influenza: The 1920s Working Hypothesis, the Public Health Paradigm, and the Prevention of Deadly Pandemics.

In standard historical accounts, the hyperlethal 1918 flu pandemic was inevitable once a novel influenza virus appeared. However, in the years following the pandemic, it was obvious to distinguished flu experts from around the world that social and environmental conditions interacted with infectious agents and could enhance the virulence of flu germs. On the basis of the timing and geographic pattern of the pandemic, they hypothesized that an "essential cause" of the pandemic's extraordinary lethality was the extreme, prolonged, and industrial-scale overcrowding of US soldiers in World War I, particularly on troopships. This literature synthesis considers research from history, public health, military medicine, veterinary science, molecular genetics, virology, immunology, and epidemiology. Arguments against the hypothesis do not provide disconfirming evidence. Overall, the findings are consistent with an immunologically similar virus varying in virulence in response to war-related conditions. The enhancement-of-virulence hypothesis deserves to be included in the history of the pandemic and the war. These lost lessons of 1918 point to possibilities for blocking the transformation of innocuous infections into deadly disasters and are relevant beyond influenza for diseases like COVID-19. (Am J Public Health. 2022;112(10):1454-1464. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2022.306976).