La cultura médica instrumental: los viajes políticos de los esfigmógrafos entre Europa y América
Generally explained by the association between precision and instrument, the instrumental dominion of medicine in actual days is assumed as a natural and necessary destiny. Placed in the practices of Mexican physicians of the XIX century, I discuss this naturalized image of medical instruments. Taking as a case the Sphygmograph, device recorder of the cardiac pulse, I interrogate the reasons of the massive import of instruments from the European markets. I have found that the political search for affirming normality and civilization of the Mexican population encircle an epistemological dimension; the instruments are revealed as appliances of knowledge and objects of consumption, in this case, of the colonial market, which hierarchies determined how in this side of America medical doctors were creating knowledge and instruments importing Europe’s instruments.
Daniel Vergara Lope and Carlos Monge Medrano: two pioneers of high altitude medicine.
Daniel Vergara Lope from Mexico and Carlos Monge Medrano from Peru were brilliant scientists in their own countries. Both scientists studied high altitude physiology and defined the physiological and anatomical mechanisms of adaptation to high elevations. The Mexican physiologist proposed his ideas 40 years before his Peruvian counterpart. This paper studies the contribution of Vergara Lope and Monge Medrano to the understanding of high altitude medicine and proposes explanations of why history has given priority to Monge, whereas Vergara Lope is relegated to anonymity.
Brushite-collagen composites for bone regeneration.
Brushite-based biomaterials are of special interest in bone regeneration due to their biocompatibility and biodegradability; on the other hand, collagen is a well-known osteoconductive biomaterial. In the present study a new brushite-collagen composite biomaterial is reported. This new biomaterial was prepared by combining citric acid/collagen type I solutions with a brushite cement powder. The obtained biomaterial was a cement paste, with improved handling properties. The effect of collagen on the setting reaction of brushite cement was studied, and was found to speed up the cement setting reaction. The cement paste set into a hard ceramic material within 18.5+/-2.1min and had compressive strength similar to that of spongeous bone (48.9+/-5.9MPa in dry conditions and 12.7+/-1.5MPa in humid conditions). The combination of collagen with citric acid revealed an interesting synergistic effect on the compressive strength of the composite material. Moreover, this new biomaterial had excellent cohesion properties (ninefold better than brushite cement), and high cellular adhesion capacity (threefold higher than brushite cement). The composite biomaterial described in this study combines good handling properties, compressive strength, cohesion and cell adhesion capacity, along with the osteoconductive and biodegradable properties inherent in brushite and in collagen-based biomaterials.