Medical Terminology Daily (MTD) is a blog sponsored by Clinical Anatomy Associates, Inc. as a service to the medical community. We post anatomical, medical or surgical terms, their meaning and usage, as well as biographical notes on anatomists, surgeons, and researchers through the ages. Be warned that some of the images used depict human anatomical specimens.
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Georg Eduard Von Rindfleisch
(1836 – 1908)
German pathologist and histologist of Bavarian nobility ancestry. Rindfleisch studied medicine in Würzburg, Berlin, and Heidelberg, earning his MD in 1859 with the thesis “De Vasorum Genesi” (on the generation of vessels) under the tutelage of Rudolf Virchow (1821 - 1902). He then continued as a assistant to Virchow in a newly founded institute in Berlin. He then moved to Breslau in 1861 as an assistant to Rudolf Heidenhain (1834–1897), becoming a professor of pathological anatomy. In 1865 he became full professor in Bonn and in 1874 in Würzburg, where a new pathological institute was built according to his design (completed in 1878), where he worked until his retirement in 1906.
He was the first to describe the inflammatory background of multiple sclerosis in 1863, when he noted that demyelinated lesions have in their center small vessels that are surrounded by a leukocyte inflammatory infiltrate.
After extensive investigations, he suspected an infectious origin of tuberculosis - even before Robert Koch's detection of the tuberculosis bacillus in 1892. Rindfleisch 's special achievement is the description of the morphologically conspicuous macrophages in typhoid inflammation. His distinction between myocardial infarction and myocarditis in 1890 is also of lasting importance.
Associated eponyms
"Rindfleisch's folds": Usually a single semilunar fold of the serous surface of the pericardium around the origin of the aorta. Also known as the plica semilunaris aortæ.
"Rindfleisch's cells": Historical (and obsolete) name for eosinophilic leukocytes.
Personal note: G. Rindfleisch’s book “Traité D' Histologie Pathologique” 2nd edition (1873) is now part of my library. This book was translated from German to French by Dr. Frédéric Gross (1844-1927) , Associate Professor of the Medicine Faculty in Nancy, France. The book is dedicated to Dr. Theodore Billroth (1829-1894), an important surgeon whose pioneering work on subtotal gastrectomies paved the way for today’s robotic bariatric surgery. Dr. Miranda.
Sources:
1. "Stedmans Medical Eponyms" Forbis, P.; Bartolucci, SL; 1998 Williams and Wilkins
2. "Rindfleisch, Georg Eduard von (bayerischer Adel?)" Deutsche Biographie
3. "The pathology of multiple sclerosis and its evolution" Lassmann H. (1999) Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 354 (1390): 1635–40.
4. “Traité D' Histologie Pathologique” G.E.
Rindfleisch 2nd Ed (1873) Ballieres et Fils. Paris, Translated by F Gross
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The adjectival term [epiploic] arises from the Greek term [επίπλουν] (pronounced “epiploun”) which is synonymous with the Latin term [omentum], referring to two abdominal peritoneal membranes, the lesser omentum and the greater omentum. For more information on the word [omentum] click here.
The word itself is used in Greek in the expression [επιπλέουν πάνω] (epiploun pano) which means “to float upon”, referring to the fact that the fatty omental apron “floats” or “drapes” upon the abdominal viscera. Hippocrates of Cos (460 BC - 370 BC) referred to the greater omentum as epiploon. This anatomical name evolved towards the Latin version, which is used today. In spite of this there are other languages where the Greek root is still used. As examples, in Spanish the terms are “epiplón mayor” and “epiplón menor”, and in French they are “grand epiploon” and “petit epiploon”.
Because of the presence of fat in the greater omentum, the medical adjectival term [epiploic] has also evolved to mean “fatty”, such as in the case of the epiploic appendages, a series of fatty appendages found in the colon.
Images property of:CAA.Inc.. Photographer:D.M. Klein
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Aaron Ruhalter, MD, FACS
I am sad to let everybody know that Dr. Ruhalter passed on yesterday January 25th, 2016. A good friend, guide, and mentor, Dr. Ruhalter was always reminding me to keep on using drawings and sketches to teach human anatomy, a subject he loved, and at which he excelled. I will miss him dearly. May he rest in peace. Dr. Miranda
Dr. Aaron Ruhalter was for many years the Executive Director of Medical Education at the Johnson & Johnson Endo-Surgery Institute in Cincinnati. Dr. Ruhalter is a Professor of Anatomy and a former Professor of Surgery at the Robert Wood Johnson Memorial Hospital in New Jersey. He was also one of the founding members of the American Association of Clinical Anatomists (AACA).
His review on the surgical anatomy of the parotid gland, submandibular triangle, and floor of the mouth is outstanding. This review was published in 1997 in the book "Mastery of Surgery", third edition, by Drs. Lloyd M. Nyhus, Robert J. Baker, and Josef E. Fischer.
Dr. Miranda worked with Dr. Ruhalter for several years, both at the Endo-Surgery Institute and at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. The picture above shows both of them preparing an anatomy blackboard session at the Institute, back in 1994.
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Refers to the internal lining of an artery or a vein. The tunica (layer) intima is composed of an inner layer known as endothelium (inner fabric or inner layer) and a subendothelial layer.
Also known as the [tunica intima vasorum], Latin for intimal (inner) layer of the vessels, the tunica inima is also known as "Bichat's tunic"
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The term [bruxism] arises from the Greek [βρυγμός] (vrygm?s), meaning “a gnashing of the teeth”, or “bruxism”.
Bruxism is usually a subconscious problem, presenting most of the times at night while the individual is asleep, and does not continue into the waking hours. In some people bruxism does continue into the day and the person is constantly gnashing the teeth, but not conscious of the activity. Awake bruxism is sometimes called [bruxomania].
Bruxism is usually idiopathic (of unknown origin) or it can be secondary to other medical conditions.
Patients with bruxism usually present with damage to the teeth by the constant attrition of the teeth by laterally grinding of the teeth of the maxilla against the teeth of the jaw. This can lead to severe tooth damage with exposure of the dentin through and absent, fractured, or damaged enamel. A secondary problem is misalignment of the teeth. The accompanying image shows misalignment and tooth damage.
Note: The links to Google Translate include an icon that will allow you to hear the pronunciation of the word.
Image by DRosenbach (en:Image:Deviated midline.JPG) [Public domain], Wikimedia Commons
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Abdominal regions
The transtubercular plane (also called the transtubercular line) is one of the surface reference lines used in surface anatomy and surgery to delineate the abdominal regions.
It is a horizontal or transverse plane that passes through the iliac tubercles, small elevations found in the iliac crest of the iliac bone. These tubercles can be palpated in a thin person, but their location can be approximated if you take the distance between the transpyloric plane and the superior aspect of the pubic symphysis and divide it in half.
The transtubercular plane marks the location of the body of the fifth lumbar vertebra and the location of the confluence of both common iliac veins to form the inferior vena cava.
Sources:
1. "Clinical Anatomy" Brantigan, OC 1963 McGraw Hill
2. "Tratado de Anatomia Humana" Testut et Latarjet 8th Ed. 1931 Salvat Editores, Spain
3. Davis, Gwilym G. "Applied Anatomy: The Construction of the Human Body Considered in Relation to Its Functions, Diseases, and Injuries"; Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott Co., 1910
Image modified from the original Davis, 1910
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UPDATED: If you came to this article directly, you should probably start reading the first one here: "The landscape panorama of Vesalius' muscle men (1)", then come back.
I had always looked at these panorama images as only one, the one that is formed by the anterior views (and one lateral view) of the muscle men plates which I shared with you in the first article. The image in the first article is what Harvey Cushing (1943) called the "eight-series". It was not until my friend Pascale Pollier sent me an interesting BBC article that I looked at the panorama formed by the posterior view images of the muscle men, called by Cushing the "six-series". After some work with original images that I own, I made the image shown here. If anything this panorama is even better!To see Cushing's original template click here.
In the enlarged version that appears when you click on the image on this article you can see how some houses' roofing and arches are shared between plates. Towards the right side of this panorama you can clearly see a meandering stream that passes through several plates. Another incredible fact of this masterpiece by Jan Stephan Van Calcar (the artist) and Andrea Vesalius (the anatomist).
The image shown here was done using original images from Vesalius’ Fabrica and composed using Adobe Fireworks CS5. Click on the image for a larger depiction. The larger image is 1800px wide.
Sources:
1. “A New View of the Vesalian Landscape” Cavanagh, GST Med Hist 1983, 27: 77-79
2. “The Panorama of Vesalius: A 'Lost' Design From Titian's Studio” Skandalakis, JE JAMA May 28, 1997, Vol 277, No. 20
3. “A Drawing for the Fabrica; and some Thoughts Upon the Vesalius Muscle-Men” Kemp. M. Med Hist. Jul 1970; 14(3): 277–288
4. “Andreas Vesalius: The Making, the Madman and the Myth” Joffe, SN. Persona Publishing 2009
5. "A Bio-Bibliography of Andreas Vesalius" Cushing, H. (1943) Schumann's