Archibald Lang McLean (1885-1922) - Explorer, writer and soldier.

Archibald McLean qualified in Sydney in 1910 and in the following year joined Douglas Mawson's Australasian Antarctic Expedition (1911-1914). He took a full part in the expedition and was forced to stay an extra year when Mawson failed to return to the base before the ship left. During this time he edited the expedition newspaper, The Adelie Blizzard.

George Murray Levick (1876-1956), Antarctic explorer.

Murray Levick is best known for being one of the surgeons on Scott's Terra Nova Antarctic expedition (1910-1913) and, as a member of the Northern Party of that expedition, spending a winter living in a snow hole when the ship was unable to collect the men. However, his career encompassed much more than that. He served in the Royal Navy during both World Wars and was a pioneer in physical medicine and rehabilitation.

Medical memorials of the Heroic Age of Antarctic exploration.

The Heroic Age of Antarctic exploration spanned the period from 1895 to 1922. Medical men who took part in the expeditions of that period made significant contributions to the expeditions in medical treatment of expedition members, geographical discovery and science and, as a result of such contributions, many had geographical features named after them. A recent paper listed five doctors from the Heroic Age who were so honoured.

Edward Leicester Atkinson (1881-1929): Antarctic explorer, scientist and naval surgeon.

Edward Leicester Atkinson qualified at St Thomas's Hospital in 1906 and joined the Navy in 1908. He was a doctor and parasitologist on Captain Scott's Terra Nova expedition to the Antarctic and had to take charge of the expedition when Scott died on his return from the South Pole. After the expedition he went to China and discovered the cause of schistosomiasis, returning at the start of the First World War in which he served with distinction, winning a DSO and Albert Medal but also being severely injured.

Use and abuse of alcohol and other drugs during the heroic age of Antarctic exploration.

During the heroic age of Antarctic exploration, there was much discussion on the role of alcohol. The explorers expected to be able to consume alcohol, and the expeditions were supported by companies producing alcoholic beverages that used the Antarctic connection in their advertising. On the other side, it was said (incorrectly) than Fridjof Nansen, perhaps the most famous of the Arctic explorers, had taken no alcohol and this was used in the arguments against alcohol by the temperance movement.

The value of traditional vital signs, shock index, and age-based markers in predicting trauma mortality.

Background: Systolic blood pressure (SBP), heart rate (HR), and respiratory rate are poor predictors of trauma outcome. We postulate that HR/SBP (shock index [SI]) and novel new markers SI × age (SIA), SBP / age (BPAI), maximum HR (220 - age) - HR (minpulse [MP]), and HR / maximum HR (pulse max index [PMI]) are better predictors of 48-hour mortality compared with traditional vital signs.

Methods: Data were extracted from the Trauma Audit and Research Network database.

The value of the difference between ED and prehospital vital signs in predicting outcome in trauma.

Introduction: Traditional vital signs are seen as an important part of trauma assessment, despite their poor predictive value in this regard.

Objective: This study evaluated whether the difference between systolic blood pressure (SBP), heart rate (HR), respiratory rate (RR) and shock index (SI) taken in the emergency department (ED) and prehospital can predict 48 h mortality postadmission following trauma.

Methods: Retrospective cohort was obtained from the Trauma Audit and Research Network.

Vital signs during and following ambulance transfer.

The aim of this study was to compare vital signs of minimally injured and moderately injured patients during ambulance transport and subsequent emergency department (ED) assessment. We carried out a retrospective chart review. Patients were divided into two groups: minimally injured patients with neck pain (group 1) and moderately injured patients with a closed ankle or wrist fracture (group 2).

'Polar anaemia': cardiac failure during the heroic age of Antarctic exploration.

On the expedition (1897-1899), Dr F.A. Cook described a disease that he called 'polar anaemia' and on this expedition it affected most of the expedition members and caused one death.

Medical comforts during the heroic age of Antarctic exploration.

In the literature of the exploration of the Antarctic in the early 20th century, there are many references to 'medical comforts'. While 'medical comforts' was sometimes used as a euphemism for alcoholic beverages, the term, which originated in the army, covered all foods and drinks used for the treatment and prevention of illness and during convalescence. This article describes the use of medical comforts during the Antarctic expeditions of the so called 'heroic age'.

Effect of spinal immobilization on heart rate, blood pressure and respiratory rate.

Introduction: Vital signs remain important clinical indicators in the management of trauma. Tissue injury and ischemia cause tachycardia and hypertension, which are mediated via the sympathetic nervous system (SNS). Spinal immobilization is known to cause discomfort, and it is not known how this might influence the SNS and contribute to abnormal vital signs.

Heart rate and systolic blood pressure in patients with minor to moderate, non-haemorrhagic injury versus normal controls.

Background: Raised blood pressure (and heart rate (HR)) due to anxiety in a clinical situation is well described and is called the white coat effect (WCE). It is not known whether the pain and anxiety that results from trauma causes a measurable WCE.

Methods: A sample of patients with a non-haemorrhagic injury from the Trauma Audit and Research Network (TARN) was compared with a healthy, non-injury sample from the Health Survey for England (HSE) databases.

An Antarctic sealing expedition and the medical diary of William Spiers Bruce (1867-1921).

William Spiers Bruce was a medical student who sailed as ship's surgeon on the Balaena, one of the ships of the Dundee Whaling Expedition to the Antarctic (1892-93). On this expedition he kept a diary listing his medical consultations and the treatments he administered. This paper considers the expedition and the diaries.

The death of Robert Falcon Scott (1869-1912) and colleagues.

This year, 2012, marks the 100th anniversary of Captain Scott his reaching the South Pole and of his death on the return journey. There has been much discussion on the cause of death of Scott and his colleagues and, in particular, whether he died of scurvy. There has probably been even more discussion on the cause of death of Edgar Evans, one of Scott's companions.

Dr Reginald Koettlitz (1860-1916): Arctic and Antarctic explorer.

Reginald Koettlitz was born in Ostend but moved to England as a child and qualified at Guy's Hospital. He was a general practitioner in County Durham for eight years before serving as doctor and geologist to the Jackson-Harmsworth Expedition to Franz-Josef Land in 1894-97. Thereafter he made further expeditions to Somaliland, Abyssinia and the Amazon before joining Captain Scott's Discovery Expedition to the Antarctic in 1901-04 as surgeon and botanist.

Psychology during the expeditions of the heroic age of Antarctic exploration.

The psychology of Antarctic explorers and groups in Antarctic bases has been much studied in recent years, and current knowledge has been summarized in a review by Palinkas and Suedenfeld (2008). There was no formal psychological research during the heroic age of Antarctic exploration, but a number of the doctors and non-medical personnel on the expeditions were keen observers of the psychological aspects of the expeditions and wrote about them. In this paper, I describe their understanding of the psychology of Antarctic exploration.

Medical supplies for the expeditions of the heroic age of Antarctic exploration: introduction.

During the heroic age of Antarctic exploration (1895-1922) there were at least 18 expeditions to the Antarctic lasting between 18 and 30 months. This is an introduction to a series of articles about the drugs taken and used in the Antarctic at this time. Most of the information relates to the expeditions of Robert Scott and Ernest Shackleton and the main supplier of medical equipment was Burroughs Wellcome and Co.