Expecting perfection

From Pathway, Spring 2007.
One of the most spectacular errors in pathology history might indirectly be credited with claiming nearly 20 million lives. It’s even more astounding to learn that the pathologist behind it was in fact the founding father of histopathology, Rudolph Virchow.
Virchow failed to diagnose German Emperor Friedrich III’s laryngeal cancer until it was too late. The politically moderate and liberal Friedrich died in 1888 after ruling for just 99 days, and his militaristic son Wilhelm II inherited the throne, setting Europe on the path to the slaughter of World War I.
To err is human, even if you do happen to be a world expert in the field. And at its heart, pathology is a very human practice, says Dr Stewart Bryant, President of the RCPA. Read more (pdf file, page 32)

When the bad bugs bite

From PathWay, Spring 2007.
Debbie: ... How can we all have died at the same time?
The Grim Reaper: (pointing with a skeletal finger) The salmon mousse!
Geoffrey: Darling, you didn't use tinned salmon did you?
Angela: I'm most dreadfully embarrassed...
Monty Python managed to make light of it in this sketch from The Meaning of Life, but in reality, food-borne illness is no laughing matter.
An estimated 5.4 million cases occur in Australia each year, causing around 18,000 hospitalisations and 120 deaths. It leads to 2.1 million lost days of work, 1.2 million medical consultations and 300,000 antibiotic prescriptions. Read more (pdf file, pg 20)

Top 50 Medical Innovations

From Australian Doctor, July 2007.
From artificial hips to anti-epileptics, the Pill to penicillin - the 20th century has seen a wealth of medical innovations emerge that have transformed how we practice medicine. Read more (pdf file).