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Grigoris Lambrakis was a Greek politician, doctor, athlete, and faculty member of the Medical School of Athens University. As an athlete, Lambrakis held the Greek record for long jump for twenty-three years and he also won several gold medals in the Balkan Athletic Games. Lambrakis received an excellent medical education. As lecturer at the University of Athens, Lambrakis became a pioneer of Gynecological Endocrinology. His philanthropy was always evident during his medical career, but he also consistently attended international pacifist meetings and demonstrations. His medical work, and his performance as lecturer of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, have been neglected, if not overshadowed, by his political career. Lambrakis is recognized worldwide as a martyr for peace. The aim in this essay is to present his life, and especially to elucidate his medical achievements.

Instituto de Ginecologia (Institute of Gynecology), in Rio de Janeiro, headed by Dr. Arnaldo de Moraes, was the first institution in Brazil to introduce and divulge medical techniques for the control of cervical cancer in the mid-1900s. It became a benchmark for actions geared towards the disease at the time, organizing a specific diagnostic procedure that set Brazilian medicine apart in the field, in which it remained a leader until the 1970s. The aim of this text is to discuss the organization and running of the institution from two perspectives: its role in enhancing the position of gynecology as a medical specialty, and its role in spreading a standard practice for the control of cervical cancer.

Doris Gordon Memorial Oration delivered to RANZCOG Annual Meeting, Wellington, 2 October, 2015.

It is not easy to précis the life of gynaecologist and obstetrician Thomas More Madden. Aside from his prolific penmanship and championing of societal issues, a study of his life serves to demonstrate the crossroads at which orthodox medicine stood during the late nineteenth century - a period of transition between 'heroic' and modern health care. Reflecting this state of flux, Madden wrote several books about childbirth but he was also interested in heterodox subjects including heliotherapy and hydrotherapy. His political beliefs were no less eclectic. On one hand he was a Catholic 'Unionist', in favour of maintaining Ireland's place in the UK, but his writing was also imbued with the spirit of the Gaelic literary revival. Through his work he tried to make a case, not just for Ireland's place in the western health care tradition but also for its contribution to contemporary medicine., (© The Author(s) 2014.)

In January 1944 the Norwegian Resistance Movement placed a radio transmitter in the attic of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, the National Hospital (Rikshospitalet), Oslo. Knut Haugland (1917-2009) used this to send messages to the Norwegian government-in-exile in London. The transmitter was discovered by the Gestapo, and German troops surrounded the building on 1 April 1944. Haugland survived a dramatic escape. While the transmitter was in operation, Haugland lived with senior registrar Finn Bøe (1906-70) and his family in a hospital apartment. Bøe risked his own life and that of his family to assist during a dramatic phase of the resistance struggle. Bøe had completed a focused and purposeful clinical and academic training when he was appointed senior registrar at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, the National Hospital, in 1943. He was professionally ambitious. His thesis from 1938 was disqualified, but four years later he submitted a new, experimental thesis which he successfully defended in 1945. In 1955, Bøe became the first senior consultant at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Aker hospital. Under his leadership, it became the largest in the Oslo area, and one of the most active in Norway with regard to science. Several of Bøe's own academic works on placental morphology and blood circulation have become classics. Outside of medicine, his great interest was music, and not only as a piano player. He also wrote a book about his fellow townsman Edvard Grieg.

Eighty years ago a publication in the Journal proved to be seminal and transformative. The report by Irving Freiler Stein and Michael Leventhal titled, "Amenorrhea associated with polycystic ovaries," has proven to be a remarkably lasting and influential publication. The growth in related literature has been increasing exponentially: the 50 years between 1950 and 2000 saw a little more than 8000 publications on the topic, whereas the 15 year period between 2001 and 2015 (so far) has seen more than 20,000 related publications, a greater than 8-fold increase in the publication rate after 2000. As we commemorate the 80th anniversary year of the publication of the report by Stein and Leventhal, it is important to ask ourselves, "Was this publication truly as seminal as it is generally assumed to be? And why did it gain such a strong foothold on the medical psyche?" To the first question, a review of the antecedent medical literature makes it clear that the report of Drs Stein and Leventhal in 1935, although not flawless, was both seminal and transformative. In fact, it was the first report to describe a series of patients, rather than isolated cases, who demonstrated the triad of polycystic ovaries, hirsutism, and oligo/amenorrhea, connecting what had previously been disparate features of polycystic ovaries and menorrhagia, and hirsutism and oligo/amenorrhea. Second, the facts that Dr Stein and his collaborators were relatively prolific writers, consistent and clear in their message and descriptions; that a possible therapy (bilateral ovarian wedge resection) had been conveniently included in the report; and that the disorder was (is) relatively prevalent, permitted what would eventually be called the Stein-Leventhal syndrome to gain a strong foothold in contemporary medical practice. Overall, we in the field of medicine have much to celebrate, as we commemorate the 80th anniversary of the publication of the report by Stein and Leventhal in 1935, for a new disorder was described, one that we know today affects, in its various forms, 1 in every 7-17 women worldwide., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

There is a long and complicated history concerning the interprofessional collaboration between midwives and gynaecologists, which is still evident in current practice. Yet, in the analysis of collaborative problems, history and its lessons are often overlooked. Consequently, less effective solutions to problems may be found, because the root cause of a problem is not addressed. In this historical perspective we show how policies of the respective professions have often focused on self-preservation and competition, rather than on effective collaboration. We also highlight how the independent midwives lost and regained authorisation, status and income. Finally, using a theoretical model for interprofessional collaboration, we reflect on where history impedes the development of integral obstetrics. The focus must be averted away from professional self-interest and power struggles, but this proves to be a complex exercise.

A review of documents on the peculiarities of obstetric and gynecological care in besieged Leningrad is presented with special reference to the data about the number of children born during blockade and their health status in the first months of life, the work of maternity hospitals, their number and personnel. The term «military time amenorrhea» coined during blockade is discussed.

Compassion is considered an important quality for a successful physician today, but did ancient physicians display and value this emotion? How did they feel when faced with the pain and suffering of their patients? How did their patients' emotions affect their own? Many ancient physicians are not well-known for expressions of compassion in their writings; however, this seems to change in the second century AD. One medical writer who exemplifies this change is Soranus of Ephesus (c. 98-138 AD). In his Gynecology, there are a number of passages where compassion is addressed or expressed (such as the chapters on the qualities of the best midwife, the symptom of pica, childbirth, and superstition). The same points can be made of Soranus' On Chronic Diseases, preserved to some extent by the Latin version and adaptation by fifth century AD medical writer Caelius Aurelianus (see, for example, the chapters on chronic headache, mania and elephantiasis). Soranus and Caelius display compassion, understanding, and flexibility of approach when dealing with patient issues; they show themselves willing to change their medical technique when they see that it is doing more harm or discomfort than good. In Soranus and Caelius, we have an image of a physician who acknowledges and is aware of their patients' emotions, beliefs and attitudes, and who exhibits compassion for them.

Despite advocating perpetual virginity and viewing childbirth as inherently injurious to female health, Soranus' attitude towards the infant in Book 2 of the Gynaecia is remarkably positive. In fact, it is only towards the infant that Soranus displays such consistently positive attitude. This compassionate approach is evident both in the content and the language employed, which is characterised by a striking occurrence of diminutives. His preference here for authorities such as Thracians and Scythians rather than illustrious ones, along with his 'language of the nursery', points to an oral, rather than literary, tradition. Soranus seems to have been the first to write so extensively on childcare; freed from the influence of any earlier tradition, he engaged in a more nuanced vision of childhood, seeing it as a 'blank slate' both physically and mentally, untouched by the faults of adulthood. While the content of Book 2 has been mined for information concerning the practicalities of child-care, it has not been evaluated in terms of its differences from the rest of the Gynaecia, which are significant.

Hospitalists work in 90% of US hospitals with over 200 beds. With over 48,000 practicing hospitalists nationwide, the field of hospital medicine has grown rapidly in its 20 years of existence. Obstetrics and gynecology (OBGYN) hospitalists are uncovering similar drivers for their growth. Obstetricians cannot be in both the hospital and the office at the same time, they face an increased acuity of hospitalized patients demanding a full time presence, and hospitals are searching for physicians aligned with their goals. OBGYN hospitalists are at a similar point today at which hospital medicine was in the late 1990s., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Through the cases of approximately 80 females in the case records of traditional physician Yi Sugwi (1664-1740?), the present study divided and reclassified the lives and diseases of females during the latter half of the Joseon Dynasty into childhood, obstetrics- and gynecology-related problems in adulthood, other diseases in adulthood, and old age and analyzed them. According to the results, female children were treated less preciously than were male children so that treatments by traditional physicians were sought out less when they were ill than in the case of male children, and acute infectious diseases were the most serious health problems. In the process of receiving treatment from traditional physicians as adults, females came in contact with traditional physicians, who were male, when necessary including face-to-face sessions and the reception of pulse examination but the yangban (literati-official) class practiced sex segregation as much as possible while the lower classes were considerably free from such restrictions. For female adults, the most serious health issues were pregnancy and childbirth so that they received help from traditional physicians and midwives when there were problems. Traditional physicians determined females' pregnancy and the health of fetuses and pregnant women through pulse examinations and medication and actively responded to diverse problems that surfaced in the process with medication and other treatments. Acute infectious diseases, too, were serious diseases suffered by females, and problems involving cold damage and the digestive system were among diseases frequently suffered by females in adulthood and old age. In old age, females often became ill in the arduous process of dealing with the deaths of adult descendants, siblings, and spouses, and tumors were among the major causes of their deaths. The deaths of those aged 70 or above were accepted as quite natural. Aged females endeavored to maintain their health and played the role of elders giving care to their descendants.

Introduction: Professor Konstantinos Logothetopoulos is considered one of the founders of modern Gynaecology in Greece., Material and Methods: The establishment of new hospitals and medical institutes in Greece, the invention of the Logo-pack and organization of the first radiotherapy centre in Greece confirm his title as a distinguished medical doctor. However, he collaborated with the Nazi occupiers during the Second World War and for this reason he is considered a traitor as his decision to become Prime Minister overshadows the image of the distinguished professor and cancels all his contribution to Greek gynaecology., Conclusion: The aim of this article is to illustrate truths and facts of the life of a prominent doctor and to prove how his political decisions damaged irreversibly his career.

Dr James Marion Sims was born in 1813 in Lancaster County, South Carolina. It was while pioneering numerous surgical procedures in Alabama that in 1849 he achieved the outstanding landmark in medical history of successfully, and consistently, repairing vesicovaginal fistulae. Sims soon developed a reputation as a fine surgeon, with new operations and techniques, using novel surgical instruments and his innovative approaches frequently published. Moving to New York City in 1853, he further established hospitals devoted entirely to women's health. Sims was controversial, with flamboyant descriptions of self-confident success, yet they were tempered with sober reflection of failure and loss. Today we remain with the Sims speculum and Sims position, eponymous tributes to his accomplishments as the 'Father of Gynaecology'., (© The Author(s) 2013 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.)

This paper discusses the knowledge and medical practices relating to cervical cancer in Brazil. It analyses the growing medical interest in the disease at the beginning of the twentieth century, the development of prevention techniques in the 1940s, and the emergence of screening programs in the 1960s. It argues that the development of knowledge on cervical cancer was related simultaneously to a number of factors: transformations in medical knowledge, the development of the idea that the disease should be treated as a public health problem, the increased concerns with women's health, and major changes to the Brazilian healthcare system. The article concludes by identifying a number of issues that are still proving to be obstacles to control of the disease.

Amália Frisch was born in Edirne/Adrianople, Turkey, in 1882 to an immigrant Jewish family from Hungary. Following her graduation from the American College for Girls in Istanbul in 1901, she traveled to Switzerland for her medical education. Amália Frisch graduated from the school of medicine in Bern in 1907, and received her MD (Doctor universae medicinae) degree from the Zurich University in 1908. She specialised in gynaecology at the Vienna University Clincs, before returning to Istanbul. In the December of 1908, Dr. Amália Frisch was appointed intern to the Austro-Hungarian Hospital in Galata to attend the women's ward. During the Balkan Wars of 1912-13 the hospital housed the wounded of the Turkish Army in its Pancaldi premises, and Amália Frisch received medals of merit for her services both from the Habsburg Emperor Franz Josef and the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed Reschad V. Amália Frisch was an active member of the Ottoman Society for the Protection of Women's Rights (est. 1913). She was deported by the French occupation command in 1919 and returned to Budapest, after which she altered her profession to stomatology and dentistry. Amália Frisch passed away in Budapest during war, in 1941.

Purpose of Review: To chronicle a medical professional society's adoption of innovation and to describe themes pertinent to the adoption., Recent Findings: In September 2013, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) published a Committee Opinion on Toxic Environmental Agents that included an infographic and social media awareness campaign. To date, it claims one of the highest total audience reaches for an ACOG Facebook post reaching nearly 18 000 viewers. Despite this powerful promise, ACOG's timely and successful social media campaign did not always appear an obvious strategy. Although social media took hold of popular culture in the early 2000s, social media's professional etiquette remained uncharted and rife, with cautionary tales through the latter half of the decade., Summary: Through a thoughtful and dedicated process, the ACOG Fellow and Junior Fellow leadership partnered to navigate the appropriate balance of innovation and prudence that propelled ACOG into social media's golden age, and paved the pathway for more progressive institutional changes.

Purpose: Research into the activities of German medical specialist associations during the Nazi period is still in its initial stages even today. In the field of gynecology and obstetrics as well, most representatives of the discipline continued to take an attitude based on "concealment and forgetting", even after the turn of the millennium. In order to break with this approach, the Bavarian Society for Obstetrics and Gynecology (Bayerische Gesellschaft für Geburtshilfe und Frauenheilkunde, BGGF) commissioned an interdisciplinary research group to focus on clarifying its Nazi past for the purposes of a history of the institution on the occasion of its centenary., Methods: The research was based on the Society's archive. When the files were found to show conspicuous gaps for the Nazi period, the investigation was extended into the role of BGGF representatives and members who were active at the time. In some cases, it was possible to draw on existing studies and to supplement the available information from additional archival sources., Results: It was found that the BGGF started at a very early stage to marginalize and ignore its "non-Aryan" members. No official decision to exclude such members was apparently taken, however. Many representatives and honorary members of the society were involved in promoting and carrying out eugenic sterilizations, simultaneously conducting abortions on some victims, and they at least shared responsibility for forced abortions among Ostarbeiterinnen ("Eastern workers", forced laborers from Eastern Europe). Accompanying unethical research that was mainly intended to garner academic prestige for the physicians involved was never discussed at the Society's conferences. Representatives of the Society who were substantially incriminated were able to continue their careers almost without interruption after 1945.