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 root term [dactly-] originates from the Greek [δάχτυλο] (dactylos) meaning "finger", also used for "toe". Applications of this term include:
- Dactylitis: The suffix [-itis] means "inflammation" or "infection. Inflammation or infection of a finger or a toe
- Dactyledema: A swelling of the fingers or toes
- Dactylomegaly: The suffix [-(o)megaly] means "enlargement". An abnormally large finger(s) or toe(s)
- Dactylospasm: Cramping of the finger(s) or toe(s)
- Dactyloscopy: Literally "to view the fingers". The science that studies fingerprints, first proposed by Sir William Herschel and Francis Galton, the system for dactyloscopy as a modern police investigative device was created by Juan Vucetich (1858 - 1925) in Argentina
Note: The links to Google Translate include an icon that will allow you to hear the Greek or Latin pronunciation of the word.
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The suffix [-ema] means "condition", as in "disease" or "pathology". Applications of this suffix include:
- Erythrema: The root term [erythr-] means "red". A condition of redness
- Emphysema: The root term [-emphys-] means "to blow" or "to dilate". A dilated condition
- Empyema: The root term [-py(o)] means "pus" as a result of an infection. A condition of pus
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This article is part of the series "A Moment in History" where we honor those who have contributed to the growth of medical knowledge in the areas of anatomy, medicine, surgery, and medical research.
Dr. Aladar Petz
Dr. Aladár Petz (1888 – 1956) Hungarian surgeon, Aladár Petz was born in 1888 in the city of Gyôr. He studied medicine at the P?ter P?zm?ny University in Budapest. In 1922 he was appointed Chief of the Surgical Department at the Holy Trinity Hospital in Gyôr. During WWI Dr. Petz served as a military surgeon.
In 1920 Dr. Petz created an improvement to the original surgical stapler developed by Dr. Húmer Húltl (1868 – 1940). The original Húltl instrument was very heavy and bulky. Petz’s instrument was lighter, easier to use and added mechanical improvements over the original. After obtaining the patent for the instrument, Petz’s device was commercialized under the instrument device company name “Aesculap”. Both Húltl and Petz called their devices “Magendarmnahtapparat” = gastrointestinal suture apparatus. This instrument was the basis of the surgical stapler research and development that happened later in the USSR in the early 1900's. Dr. Petz and his "Von Petz" stapler are an integral part of the history of surgical stapling.
Although his Hungarian name was Aladar Petz, his name is better known by the German version Aladár Von Petz. Because of his long tenure as Chief of Surgery, Hospital Manager, and his special dedication to saving the hospital during WWII, his name is remembered at the Alad?r Petz Teaching Hospital of Gyôr in Hungary.
Sources:
1. “Aladár Petz, the inventor of the modern surgical staplers” Ol?h, A. Surgery 2008;143:146-147
2. “Current Practice of Surgical Stapling" Ravitch, MM; Steichen, FM, 1991.
3. “Highlights of Twentieth Century Surgery in Hungary” Sandor, J et al. World J. Surg 2004; 28, 526–532
4. “Aladár Petz (1888–1956) and His World-Renowned Invention: The Gastric Stapler” (commentary by Dr. Felicien Steichen) Ol?h, A. Dig Surg 2002;19: 393-399.
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The prefix [erythr-] originates from the Greek [ερυθρός] (erythros) meaning "red". Applications of this include:
- Erythrocyte: The suffix [-(o)cyte] means "cell". A red cell, referring to a red blood cell
- Erythroblast: The suffix [-(o)blast] means "a germ" or "a sprout". An erythroblast is a red blood cell that has not matured yet and still contains a nucleus
- Erythroblastocyte: This is probably a better word, not used much, that refers to a red cell that is still a "sprout", not yet ready
- Erythropoieisis: The suffix [-(o)poieisis] means "to make". Refers to the process that creates red blood cells
Note: The links to Google Translate in these articles include an icon that will allow you to hear the Greek or Latin pronunciation of the word.
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The root term [-dext-] and its variant [-dexter-] arise from the Latin [dexter] meaning "right". It may be pointed out that the modern Greek word for "right" is [δεξιά] (dexia), and they are probably related with the Latin term.
It is interesting that a word meaning "right" would be used in the word "dexterous" meaning "skilled". The reason is that the right hand, being the one most used by many is more skilled than the left hand.
The term [ambidextrous] is said to mean "someone skilled with both hands". In reality, it refers to a person that "has two right hands", therefore skilled with both hands.
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The middle cerebral arteries are paired terminal branches of the internal carotid artery. Each middle cerebral artery supplies arterial blood to the brain beyond the arterial circle of Willis. The vascular territory of the middle cerebral artery supplies the lateral surfaces of the frontal, parietal, and temporal cerebral lobes as well as the deeply situated insular lobe.
There are many anatomical variations of the middle cerebral artery, as described here.
Clinical anatomy, pathology, and surgery of the brain and spinal cord are some of the lecture topics developed and delivered by Clinical Anatomy Associates, Inc.
Image modified from the original (in the public domain) by Sobotta (1945)