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TMS
5 MAY 2012
TMS
VOLUME 2 ISSUE 2
Aelius Galenus
Galen Claudius or Claudius Galenus (129AD - 201
AD), was a Greek philosopher and physician born in
an ancient Greco-Roman town in Asia Minor called
Pergamon, today we call it Bergama, Turkey.
Galen’s father (Aelius Nicon) was a wealthy architect and builder with a high fascination in mathematics, logic, and astronomy as well as exotic Greek
Galen By Wikipedia. literature. Additionally, not much is said about his
mother except that she was a hot-tempered woman.
(1) In 152 AD, he studied in Alexandria for four
years under Numisianus [eminent Greek physician at Corinth]. In fact,
during this period Galen produced a number of dictionaries of both
literature and medicine. Also, he started a major work called ―On
Demonstration” that unfortunately no copy of this work survives today.
In 157 AD, he returned to his native city and became the prestigious
physician to the deadly Roman gladiators.(3) Also, we know that
Galen helped with ―the production” by giving his recommendations on
the use of instruments that Romans had a wide variety usage of, including different sized scalpels, scissors, forceps, splints, and retractors (2) that for nearly fifteen hundred years have barely changed in
design. In modern medicine or what we, Biomedical Technicians, call
these medical devices now are “surgical instruments”.
He has become an immortal icon within the Biomedical and Physiology communities because his anatomy and physiology contributions
ensured that: 1.) Arteries are filled with blood rather than pneuma―Ancient Greek word for breath‖. 2.) Chest expansion is derived from
diaphragmatic and thoracic muscle action precedes ventilation rather
than the reverse. 3.) Urine is formed by the kidneys and not the bladder. 4.) Spinal cord and spinal nerves control specific neuromuscular
functions. 5.) Voice originates in the recurrent laryngeal nerve, not in
the heart. Today, we honor him as the ―Father of Sport’s Medicine‖.
References:
1. Galen Claudius – Galen the Physician Biography. Hellinca.
Access date 9 March 2012. http://www.mlahanas.de/Greeks/
Galen.htm
2. Galen – Doctor to the Gladiators. DocuWatch: History. Access
date. 12 march 2012. http://history.docuwat.ch/videos/roman/
galen-doctor-to-the-gladiators/?channel_id=0
Lyons, Albert. S., (2012) the Greek Physician Galen. Health3.
Guidance.org. http://www.healthguidance.org/entry/6341/1/
The-Greek-Physician-Galen.html
Special points of interest:
Didactic Muses
Case Studies
Students Ground
Certification prep
Medical Diagnosis
Med Tech History
Highlights
Games
Marketplace
Pro-words
Inside this issue:
Ultrasound Physics
9
Field Case Studies
22
Students Corner
25
Cert Prep
28
Medical Diagnosis
29
Android
33
MTH
44