World War I. Vietnam War & Health and Medicine (II). By the Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815) there were still no orderlies to care for the wounded and stretcher-bearing was done by regimental musicians. In the Crimean War (1853-1856) 16,000 British soldiers died of sickness and only 2600 were killed in battle. The Crimean War influenced the development of professional nursing and transportation of patients, as did the later American Civil War (1861-1865). In the South African War (1899-1901) doctors gained experience in small-calibre rifle wounds and found antiseptic techniques were effective in treating gunshot wounds. Field hospitals were used for the first time in this war.In World War I, measures to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, including mobile laboratories, tetanus antitoxin and vaccination against typhoid, limited the effect of disease. However, outbreaks of disease such as the devastating Spanish flu pandemic in 1918 during demobilisation were a continuous reminder for doctors to be vigilant. There were new developments in orthopaedics, neurosurgery and psychiatry. World War I has traditionally been viewed as having a positive impact on scientific medicine. Developments on the battlefield in specialties such as orthopaedics were later used to treat the civilian population. World War I also saw a huge increase in the number of female nurses and male orderlies working in field hospitals near the fighting. Owing to the shortage of men, the War Office was forced to use women to drive ambulances and work in factories. Members of several independent women's groups performed as surgeons in the war zone, although they were barely recognised for their efforts. During the World War II, developments were made in drugs such as penicillin and medical specialities focused on plastic surgery, rehabilitation and tropical diseases such as malaria. Additionally, experience from the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) demonstrated that blood could be stored and then safely transferred from patient to patient. During World War II, inspections of volunteers and conscripts, and of those children evacuated from inner-city slums to escape bombing, exposed the poor health of some citizens. Steps were taken to improve the health of those at home, particularly children and mothers, with better nutrition and control of conditions such as scabies. Trauma care for the civilian population was influenced by medical advances during the Korean War (1950-1953) and Vietnam War (1959-1975). These advances included using helicopters to transport soldiers and the development of the mobile army surgical hospital (MASH) unit, which was designed to bring experienced surgeons closer to the front lines so that wounded soldiers could be treated more quickly. During the Korean War, a seriously wounded soldier who arrived at a MASH unit had a 97% chance of survival after treatment. War has certainly had an impact on medicine. The numbers of injured and diseased soldiers and the need to maintain a strong military force to defend the nation ensured that the medical treatment of the military was prioritised. In times of peace some of these developments have been used to treat the civilian population. While some wars are viewed as more influential on medical practice and innovation than others, the carnage and waste of war outweigh any positive aspects of conflict, even for medicine. Dear Egyptian Mail readers, Your comments and/or contributions are welcome. We promise to publish whatever is deemed publishable at the end of each series of articles. [email protected]
