York Medical Record Research Articles

Mary Putnam Jacobi and the Politics of Medicine in Nineteenth-Century America (review)

Reviewed by: Mary Putnam Jacobi and the Politics of Medicine in Nineteenth-Century America Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz Carla Bittel . Mary Putnam Jacobi and the Politics of Medicine in Nineteenth-Century America. Studies in Social Medicine. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2009. xv + 328 pp. Ill. $40.00 (978-0-8078-3283-7). In this well-conceived, intelligent, and thoughtful biography, Mary Putnam Jacobi (1842-1906) emerges as an extraordinary woman who made major contributions in medicine and reform. She was a woman in the mold of Margaret Fuller. What to other women were obstacles were to her challenges. Seemingly destined for a literary career as the daughter of publisher George Palmer Putnam, she determined to become a physician. After study at the College of Pharmacy of the City of New York and Female Medical College of Pennsylvania (from which she graduated in 1864), she traveled to France with her sights on the University of Paris. Unwelcome at first, her persistence pushed the school to allow her to enter the École de Médecine in 1868 as its first female student. She graduated in 1871 with a bronze medal for her thesis. All the while, she wrote fiction for income and reports on French medicine for the New York Medical Record and, radicalized by reading and friendship, became caught up in revolutionary fervor. She returned to New York [End Page 302] to form a private practice and teach at the Women's Medical College of the New York Infirmary. She became active professionally, publishing her medical writings and joining physicians' societies. In 1873 she married Abraham Jacobi, an émigré from the 1848 revolutions and the founder of pediatric medicine in the United States. The two shared philosophical positivism, radical politics, and enthusiasm for medicine. They had three children, losing one shortly after birth and another from diphtheria as a child. Jacobi came to national attention in 1876 when her essay, The Question of Rest for Women during Menstruation, won Harvard's honored Boylston prize and appeared the following year under the Putnam imprint. Bittel offers a new understanding of Jacobi as one who employed the methods of science and the laboratory to prove women's equality. In an era whose dominant voices trumpeted the importance of sex differences, Jacobi insisted on their relative insignificance. For example, because she understood menstruation as a nutritive, not a reproductive, event, she contended that women generally did not need to protect themselves by ceasing work or study during their monthly flow. To the contrary women needed physical and mental activity to attain true health. In her nuanced and careful discussion of Jacobi's many writings, Bittel clarifies that Jacobi was hardly neutral in her research and reporting: like her medical opponents, she deployed scientific investigation to prove her social and political understandings. Left understated is a critical difference: Jacobi went beyond her adversaries' reliance on case studies to devise and perform laboratory tests and gather statistical data. Jacobi's enthusiasm for a medicine based on laboratory research and focus on nutrition provides the key to her position on many controversial issues: her willingness to perform ovariotomies, her support of vivisection, and her advocacy for the creation of the Johns Hopkins Medical School. Jacobi's belief in equality led her to support women physicians and ultimately to become a strong voice for suffrage. Bittel effectively treats aspects of Jacobi's intellect and character that proved particularly helpful to some women who sought her help to relieve mental suffering. Jacobi brought a respectful attitude that potentially enabled women to imagine lives of activity and purpose. One embellishment left unattended in this account is that, seemingly alone among American physicians treating hysteria, Jacobi absorbed the insights of German psychiatrist Wilhelm Griesinger. As seen in her 1881 paper, "The Prophylaxis of Insanity," his work enabled her to view mental health and illness on a continuum and imagine a complex relation between body and mind. This minor omission does not really detract from this beautifully rendered biography. Bittel brings to her subject not only expertise in U.S. history but also a deep understanding of American medical education and practice. She sets Jacobi firmly within the contexts of...

"The Long Arm" and the Law

commit acts of aggressive violence: Inverted women, who may retain their feminine emotionality combined with some degree of infantile impulsiveness and masculine energy, present a favorable soil for the seeds of crime, under those conditions of jealousy and allied emotions which must so oftenf enter into the invert's life.' Among the various case studies that Ellis cites as evidence of lesbian criminality, none was more familiar to the American public than that of Alice Mitchell. Just five years earlier, the young Tennessee woman had murdered her lover, Freda Ward, in what Ellis could rightly call a passional crime of jealousy. Mitchell confessed, killed Freda because I loved her, and she refused to marry me. During the sensational coverage of Mitchell's trial, news accounts hastened to feed public curiosity about lesbian desire and criminality, whose seemingly inescapable connection was underscored in a New York Medical Record account titled Lesbian Love and Murder.2 Small wonder that this potent mixture of lesbianism, jealousy, and murder should become the stuff of detective fiction in Mary Wilkins Freeman's The Long Arm, winner of an 1895 Bacheller News Syndicate detective story contest.' While Laura Behling argues that the Alice Mitchell case offers a suggestive model for Freeman's text, Bradley Shaw notes that the Lizzie Borden trial was a New England scandal Freeman must also have known well.4 Both are crucial precedents, for if The Long Arm turns out to resemble the Alice Mitchell case, the structure of Freeman's text requires us to believe that it might, in fact, be the Lizzie Borden story. The Long Arm centers on Sarah Fairbanks, a young woman accused of her father's murder, who takes on the role of detective in an attempt to exonerate herself. Sarah wakes one

"IMMUNOLOGIC OBSERVATIONS IN AUTUMNAL HAY-FEVER"

<h3>To the Editor:</h3> —In his paper on immunologic observations in autumnal hay-fever (The Journal, May 3), Dr. Harry S. Bernton discusses the Scheppegrell four-group classification of hay-fever pollens as published in the<i>Boston Medical and Surgical Journal</i>, July 12, 1917. This, however, has since been revised, the new classification of three major and five minor groups having been published in the<i>New York Medical Journal and Record</i>, June 20, 1923. In this report, the following statement is made: "While the grouping of hay-fever pollens from a biologic"—and botanic; the ragweeds and artemisias, for instance, both belong to the<i>Compositae</i>family, but are divided into separate groups— "viewpoint has proved of great advantage in simplifying the diagnostic tests and treatment of hay-fever, our experience has demonstrated that the most common member in the patient's vicinity, of the group to which he reacts, should be selected for his immunization." Regarding the ragweed

DEATH RATE OF NITROUS OXID

To the Editor: —I was greatly surprised to read in Queries and Minor Notes (The Journal, July 28, p. 320) that the accepted mortality rate from nitrous oxid is about 1 death in 1,000,000 anesthesias. In the New York Medical Record , July 29, 1916, I reported fourteen nitrous oxid deaths that had occurred in Columbus alone, with full details of each death. Gwathmey, in his review on anesthesia in the New York Medical Journal , Oct. 28 and Nov. 4, 1916, states that gas should never be used alone, as it is unsafe for even short operations. The same writer in the Annals of Surgery , August, 1921, in writing of nitrous oxid-oxygen, states that the advocates of this anesthetic agent probably responsible for more deaths than are the advocates of any one anesthetic or single method. Since the communication to the Medical Record , nitrous oxid-oxygen has been little used as

ACQUIRED NON-MALIGNANT STRICTURE OF THE RECTUM.—CAUSES, SYMPTOMS AND TREATMENT.

The position here taken by the writer was assumed by him first in an article published in the New York Medical Record. On that occasion he expressed the opinion that the great majority of observers had been led to consider syphilis the causative factor in the production of rectal stricture by the fact that this condition has most frequently been observed in syphilitic subjects. Since that time he has become more thoroughly convinced of the correctness of this view, and he still believes that it is much more rational to assume that syphilis is not immediately responsible for such lesions. The following reasons appear to him to justify the stand he has taken: Endarteritis is a well-recognized state in syphilis. This change in the vascular system, combined with the resultant low state of nutrition, renders the mucosa of the rectum less resistant to irritants and trauma. Under these circumstances small

"A New Operative Method for Exposing the Seminal Vesicles and Prostate for Extirpation."

Toledo, Ohio, June 4, 1901. <h3>To the Editor:</h3> —In the May 4 issue ofThe Journalmy attention has been called to an article by Dr. Eugene Fuller, of New York, on the subject of "A New Operative Method for Exposing the Seminal Vesicles and Prostate for Extirpation." Inasmuch as Dr. Fuller's assumptions are based upon work which originated, so far as I have any definite information, with myself more than nine years ago, and was published in the<i>New York Medical Record</i>, Aug. 6, 1892, I feel that he has done me an injustice to publish a report of "a new method" wherein he describes an operation exactly like my own, with the unimportant change of the patient from the dorsal to the ventral decubitus. Does changing a patient from the dorsal to the ventral position give an operator the right to lay claim to all the work that

Origin of Leprosy in Hawaii.

Koloa, Kauai, H. I., Dec. 15., 1900. <h3>To the Editor:</h3> —In your issue of November 17 last you say editorially in regard to the origin of leprosy in Hawaii, its protection by the chiefs, etc.: "The missionary physicians soon learned to recognize it, and one of them, Dr. Dwight Baldwin, it is said, made a report of it, stating the facts of its origin.... So long as the Hawaiian monarchy existed, segregation of lepers, though legally demanded, was very imperfectly carried out, owing, it is said, to the interference in high places.... The isolation law is an unpopular one with the natives.... These data were obtained from the Honolulu<i>Commercial Advertiser</i>, whose authority for the main facts is the Rev. Sereno Bishop....<i>We hare not seen this bit of medical history narrated elsewhere</i>." In my article on leprosy, which appeared in the<i>New York Medical Record</i>of Jan. 27. 1900,

Grooved Director for Vaginal Hysterectomy.

Indianapolis, Nov. 17, 1900. To the Editor: —I am very much surprised to read in your issue of November 17 an article by Dr. E. D. Ferguson, of Troy, N. Y., in which he describes a grooved director for vaginal hysterectomy that in every essential feature is identical with the grooved staff devised by Dr. Joseph Eastman twelve years ago. It is only fair to Dr. Ferguson to assume that he was not aware that he had been antedated twelve years in his invention, although it must be admitted that his acquaintance with the various methods of vaginal hysterectomy was not quite as wide as it might have been before placing his grooved director before the profession. The staff devised by Dr. Joseph Eastman has been described and illustrated in such prominent medical journals as the New York Medical Record of April 1, 1893, the American Gynecological and Obstetrical Journal

Has Edson Scooped the Record?

ABSTRACT Tecumseh, Mich., Feb. 18, 1896.To the Editor: —The following clipping is taken from the Detroit Pree Press and certainly speaks very plainly for itself:To Physicians in Regular Practice will be sent free by mail a sample bottle of Dr. Edson's Aseptolin, the new discovered treatment for consumption, etc., together with Dr. Edson's paper, reprinted from the New York Medical Record of Feb. 8, 1896. Those who have patients suffering from consumption are urged to test this remedy. None but physicians can use it. Address, etc., etc.We are living in a decidedly fast age.Respectfully,

NOTES OF AN EPIDEMIC OF ACUTE ANTERIOR POLIOMYELITIS.

The following "Notes" are the result of an investigation undertaken by me in an official capacity at the time of the outbreak, and since continued through private and professional intercourse. The epidemic was one of an acute nervous disease whose chief distinguishing characteristic was motor paralysis, more or less complete, of one or more members or groups of muscles, and which prevailed in the State of Vermont, chiefly in a single valley, during the summer of 1894. The results of my investigations as far as completed at the time were published in the<i>Yale Medical Journal</i>for Nov., 1894, and in the<i>New York Medical Record</i>for Dec. 1,1894. At the time of making these reports it did not seem possible to speak of the epidemic more definitely than as one of "acute nervous disease of unusual type." A further careful study of the complex features of the epidemic, however, and

CLINICAL EXPERIENCE WITH ANTITOXIN IN PRIVATE AND HOSPITAL PRACTICE IN THE TREATMENT OF DIPHTHERIA—(ALL FORMS).

My first successful case with antitoxin was published in the<i>New York Medical Record</i>, Oct. 6, 1894, in which a child 11 years old was attended by Dr. Gerlach. In this case I injected 5 ccm. of Aronson's antitoxin between the shoulder blades. The child was discharged, cured, on the fourth day. This patient was presented before the New York Post-Graduate Clinical Society at its first meeting in the Hospital Building in October. Since then I have published a series of papers, embodying various clinical experiences; notably, however, papers that appeared on Nov. 17, 894, in the<i>New York Medical Record.</i>A series of thirty-six cases, which were attended by me, was published in the January number of the<i>American Journal of Medical Sciences</i>, wherein I reported a very successful list of cases. My percentage of deaths was but 5.8 per cent. The antitoxin used was brought over by me

Journalistic Enterprise.

—We congratulate our esteemed contemporary, the<i>New York Medical Record</i>, on its cable reports of the Eleventh International Medical Congress. The first instance of the kind, we believe, attempted in American medical journalism. Blank Applications for membership in theAssociationat theJournaloffice.

On the Use of Creosote in the Treatment of Pulmonary Phthisis. By Beverly Robinsonm, M. D., Clinical Professor of Medicine, at Bellevue Hospital Medical College, New York. Reprinted from the New York Medical Record

Back to table of contents Previous article Next article ARTICLENo AccessOn the Use of Creosote in the Treatment of Pulmonary Phthisis. By Beverly Robinsonm, M. D., Clinical Professor of Medicine, at Bellevue Hospital Medical College, New York. Reprinted from the New York Medical RecordJ. G. B.J. G. B.Search for more papers by this authorPublished Online:1 Apr 2006https://doi.org/10.1176/ajp.48.4.534AboutSectionsPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail "On the Use of Creosote in the Treatment of Pulmonary Phthisis. By Beverly Robinsonm, M. D., Clinical Professor of Medicine, at Bellevue Hospital Medical College, New York. Reprinted from the New York Medical Record." American Journal of Psychiatry, 48(4), pp. 534–535 Access content To read the fulltext, please use one of the options below to sign in or purchase access. Personal login Institutional Login Sign in via OpenAthens Purchase Save for later Item saved, go to cart PPV Articles - American Journal of Psychiatry $35.00 Add to cart PPV Articles - American Journal of Psychiatry Checkout Please login/register if you wish to pair your device and check access availability. Not a subscriber? Subscribe Now / Learn More PsychiatryOnline subscription options offer access to the DSM-5 library, books, journals, CME, and patient resources. This all-in-one virtual library provides psychiatrists and mental health professionals with key resources for diagnosis, treatment, research, and professional development. Need more help? PsychiatryOnline Customer Service may be reached by emailing [email protected] or by calling 800-368-5777 (in the U.S.) or 703-907-7322 (outside the U.S.). FiguresReferencesCited byDetailsCited byNone Volume 48Issue 4 April 1892Pages 534-535 Metrics PDF download History Published online 1 April 2006 Published in print 1 April 1892

A PATHOLOGICAL CONDITION OF THE LUNGS, HITHERTO UNDESCRIBED IN THIS COUNTRY, BUT WHICH IS NOT INFREQUENT.Read by Title in the Section of the Practice of Medicine and Physiology at the Forty-second Annual Meeting of the American Medical Association, at Washington, D. C., May, 1891.

During the course of a very prolonged service in hospitals, I have repeatedly observed a condition of the lungs which is markedly distinct and characteristic, which I have not seen described. A full account of this appeared in the New York Medical Record , October 19, 1889. I will give here a succinct review of the main features and symptoms, in order that we may decide whether it is only a pathological state, or whether it should rank as a distinct disease. Patients presented the following symptoms: Dulness or sub-dulness, generally at the middle, lateral orposterior portions of the chest; there was always imperfect respiration; scarcely any râle present, or if so sparsely disseminated, and generally the subcrepitant; or perhaps there was only rough breathing. The condition was consequent on antecedent morbid states, and was discoverable weeks before death, if a fatal result ensued. There was not necessarily fever or

PNEUMATIC DIFFERENTIATION AND THE PNEUMATIC DIFFERENTIAL PROCESS. ITS DEFINITION AND GENERAL SUGGESTIONS FOR ITS APPLICATION.

The term pneumatic was first used by the author, in an article which appeared in the New York Medical Record , January 17, 1885. In this article, or in a subsequent one, certain improvements were spoken of which promised to enlarge large the scope of the process there described. This paper is written for the purpose of giving a fuller description of what has now come to be known as the Differential Process. Pneumatic differentiation is the mechanical expression of the thoughts and ideas of two men, a physicist and a physician. However parallel their work may have been to earlier investigators, the labor has been entirely independent, and perhaps for this reason there comes a point of divergence which carries their investigations considerably beyond the labors of Hawk, Lange, Junod and Waldenberg. The cabinet in the hands of lung specialists is capable of nice and skillful adjustment to

PALLIATIVE MEASURES IN REPTURED EXTRA-UTERINE PREGNANCY.

Read before the Chicago Medical Society, Dec. 1, 1884. An editorial bearing this title and appearing in the New York Medical Record , of Oct. 25, 1884, contains the following statement: There is no palliative measure for a ruptured extra-uterine cyst; there is no expectant treatment; and there is no other way known to medicine by which a woman in this condition can be reasonably expected to survive, save by the prompt use of the knife, and there is no reason for thinking that she would die if this be resorted to in time. The object of this paper is to offer a protest against this ex cathedrâ mode of settling a question, in regard to which there is room for considerable latitude of opinion. Dogmatism, offensive and unphilosophical under all circumstances, attains its acme of arrogance when applied to rules of practice in medicine and surgery. Certainly, the use of

Litholapaxy — Dr. Bigelow to the Editor of the New York Medical Record

Litholapaxy — Dr. Bigelow to the Editor of the New York Medical Record