In medical school I learned the first rule of surgery: “Eat when you can, sleep when you can, and don’t mess with the pancreas.”
It may seem funny that the pancreas, of all organs, is held in such high regard …
One of the funniest “vanity” license plates I’ve seen was owned by a urologist (doctor who specializes in bladder, prostate, and kidney issues). It read, “NOPCME.” In other words, “No pee? See me!” I’ll never forget that blue sports car …
Have you ever wondered why a person needs to be on a ventilator? Ok, so maybe you haven’t. Now that you think about it, though, do you know why? Well, it’s usually one of two reasons – either their lungs …
Do you know how long you can survive without food or water? The answer may vary depending on how well stocked you are to start (and the environment – how hot/dry it is), but on average, we can survive about …
Do you remember the scene in Finding Nemo where the fish jam up their aquarium filter to get their dentist owner to clean the tank? That scene always makes me think of kidneys – because without them, our bodies would …
The spleen has been the target of much ridicule, made fun of by medical students and dismissed as nothing more than a “graveyard for red blood cells.” In the Middle Ages, the spleen was associated with melancholy, and in more …
When I think about the liver, I’m often reminded of a comedy sketch from a Monty Python movie. In the sketch, organ donor nurses arrive at a patient’s home, requesting her liver before she is deceased. When the patient complains …
Most non-medical people don’t know the difference between an artery and a vein, and the confusion is quite understandable. The truth is, arteries and veins connect to each other and are part of a circuit that transports blood from the …
