Friday, January 05, 2007

vote on the greatest medical advance

what, in your opinion, is the greatest medical advance since 1840? was it anesthesia? antibiotics? immunology? the pill?

today the British Medical Journal opened up this poll to anyone, even the unwashed masses like me who know shit about medicine but know their lives would have been a lot different without oral contraceptives, amoxicillin and meth. (just kidding. meth didn't make the poll's short-list, an obvious oversight on the part of the "experts" who identified the 15 finalists.)

read more about the poll here, or go to the BMJ's site, where there's a link to the poll itself at the top of the homepage. voting ends the 18th.

if you do vote, spill your choice in a comment. i'm curious.

5 comments:

FINN said...

[i voted for imaging cos i always wanted the x-ray glasses in the backs of the DC comix.]

Mojo said...

I voted for vaccines. Prevention is better than the cure.

addon said...

Finn! Helloooo there! I have been on a journey far far away but with you in spirit. I will communicate with you separately by e-mail.

Being, when I last checked, a male and therefore, as most other genders would argue, a total wimp, an assertion with which I quite agree, I absolutely vote for anaesthesia.

My wife has had two total knee reconstructions - would these have been fun with no anaesthesia? I have had cataracts removed - would these have been fun with no anaesthesia? Many years ago, I had a pilonidal sinus cut out of my bum - would that have been fun with no anaesthesia? I have even, as a routine check for the oldies, had a colonoscopy and an endoscopy (at the same time but hopefully using different tubes) - would these have been fun with no anaesthesia? When I get my rotting teeth drilled, routed, ground, extracted, root-canal-ed, or filled, would that be fun with no anaesthesia? Having the teenage grandchildren here - would that be fun without anaesthesia?

Who could think of, for example, an open-heart operation without anaesthesia?

So that gets my vote.

fatmammycat said...

Anaesthesia for sure. Do I want to be awake during a procedure, no sir, I do not.

FINN said...

Do I want to be awake during a procedure, no sir, I do not.

i submit a rubber mallet and 100-proof absolut can achieve the same effect, without the post-anaesthesia funk.

this method would work for adam's grandkids too. it might even rout out the nasties that mojo's vaccines address. plus it helps you get back to sleep at 2am.

welcome back from whatever strange planet you visited, adam.