Medical Mysteries Across History

By: Roy Benaroch MD, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Roy Benaroch MD

Length: 4 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

In medical school, every patient is a teaching case - and every patient can be your teacher. For hundreds of years, medical students around the world have learned the secrets of medicine by looking at real cases, involving real people and featuring real symptoms.

But what happens when those medical cases are a mystery? How do doctors diagnose illnesses and save lives using the best knowledge they have about health and disease? What differences (and similarities) are there between the ways doctors work today and the ways they worked thousands of years ago?

In these 10 eye-opening lectures by a practicing doctor and medical educator, you’ll walk through a series of medical mystery cases ripped from history and involving well-known historical figures whose identities are nevertheless hidden from you. Every one of these cases (featuring presidents, scientists, singers, kings, and queens) requires you to use your detective skills to identify and diagnose the mystery patient just like the doctors that attended them. In the process, you’ll learn fascinating insights into medicine: both the medicine that was practiced thousands of years ago and the medicine doctors practice today.

What are the historic and modern consequences of fever? How do doctors diagnose and treat cardiovascular disease and alcoholism? How does radiation and heavy metal poisoning affect the human body? What so-called “modern” diseases were actually documented in the ancient past? Solving these mystery cases will give you a new perspective on how the human body works - and on some world-changing figures whom you’ve never viewed from a doctor’s point of view.

©2019 Audible Originals, LLC (P)2020 Audible Originals, LLC.

So interesting!

I’m not a medical professional by any means, but I do pay attention to my health and have had a couple issues that required some digging to discover root causes (luckily I have had good doctors!) So I found this so very interesting; not only because of the process of uncovering and understanding symptoms and causes but the historical aspect included with the lectures. I am looking forward to additional courses by Dr Roy!

Fun and enlightening

This was a short but fun review of some famous people who died of maybe not so obvious causes. I could identify some of the people before they were announced but their stories were new to me. At least the stories of their health.

I feel like a doctor!

Key takeaway is that we need to understand history. Be a detective to get an understanding of where it started and how you can innovate around based on new and current tools.

Great fun

I guessed some of the diseases and some of the people. It’s hard enough to be a challenge but easy enough to be fun

Interesting!

Really enjoyed trying to guess who died of white. Really like the narrators voice as well which is always important

Exceptional and Educational

Suited well for medical professionals and the public! Easy to follow and understand! So enlightening.

Very Interesting

I enjoyed the guessing game. I knew some; didn’t know others. He presented the information on the way in which doctors diagnose patients’ ailments in an interesting manner.

Fun Detective Work!

I loved the twists and turns from each case. It was interesting and educational, while also being fun. This book is like a whodunnit of medical diseases, and you'll be surprised at who some of the victims turned out to be!

I especially have to thank the author for his comments about opioids and opoid patients. He acknowledges the fact that not all chronic pain patients are addicts, and they shouldn't be treated as such. I also appreciate his advocacy for a specific woman featured in one of the chapters.

Overall, this book is a medical adventure guided by a very insightful doctor. It's easy to follow, and really cool when you start to understand diagnostic procedures.

Interesting and fun

I enjoyed the challenge of sleuthing out medical diagnoses of historical figures. Fun guessing who the patient was in each case. Only negative was the ccasional unnecessary politically liberal statements.

Engaging, charming, and enlightening

Engaging, charming, and enlightening are the words that have come to me after listening to Medical Mysteries Across History by Roy Benaroch MD, The Great Courses Audible audiobook narrated by Roy Benaroch.