Scienceville
Branches of Medicine
Doctors have special tools, special words and even a special day! Peek into the world of medicine, from an ancient Indian surgeon to a doctor who listened through a paper tube.
Did you know?
Long ago, the Indian healer Sushruta wrote about rebuilding a damaged nose using skin from the patient's forehead or cheek. That is why he is sometimes called the 'father of plastic surgery'.
In 1816, French doctor René Laennec rolled sheets of paper into a tube to listen to a patient's heart. His idea became the stethoscope. 'Stethos' is the Greek word for chest.
India celebrates National Doctors' Day on 1 July. It honours Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy, a famous doctor who also became Chief Minister of West Bengal. He was born and also died on that date.
Try this: Make a paper stethoscope
Roll a sheet of paper into a tight tube and tape it. In a quiet room, place one end gently on a friend's chest, a little to the left, and put your ear to the other end. Can you hear 'lub-dub'? Now ask your friend to do 20 jumping jacks and listen again. What has changed?
Go further: Decode doctor words
Many medical words are built from old Greek word-parts. 'Ophthalmo' means eye, 'neuro' means nerve, 'gastro' means stomach and '-logy' means 'study of'. So an ophthalmologist is an eye doctor, and a neurologist looks after the brain and nerves. 'Rhino' means nose, which is why a rhinoceros is a 'nose-horned' animal! Next time you see a long medical word, try breaking it into parts.