Yellow jack : how yellow fever ravaged America and Walter Reed discovered its deadly secrets / John R. Pierce, Jim Writer.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Pierce, John R., 1947-

Contributor:

Writer, Jim, 1958-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Yellow fever--History.

Yellow fever.

Yellow Fever--history.

History, 19th Century.

Physicians.

Physicians--history.

Reed, Walter, 1851-1902.

Reed, Walter.

History.

Medical Subjects:

Yellow Fever--history.

History, 19th Century.

Physicians.

Physicians--history.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

ix, 278 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Hoboken, NJ : J. Wiley, [2005]

Summary:

"Yellow Jack tracks the history of this deadly scourge from its earliest appearance in the Caribbean 350 years ago, telling the remarkable and triumphant story of a few extraordinarily brave souls who brought their very best to battle against yellow fever." "Based in large part on a massive body of research collected by Dr. Philip S. Hench, this medical adventure follows the exploits of the four-member U.S. Army Yellow Fever Board, led by U.S. Army major and physician Walter Reed. In the aftermath of the Spanish American War, the team assembled in Cuba - long believed to be the fount of yellow fever - on one of the most dangerous missions in medical history." "Risking not only their own lives, but also those of the many volunteers who agreed to be infected with the virus, the team devised a series of elegantly simple experiments to pursue the disease as far as the science and technology of the era would allow. During their short stay in Cuba, these intrepid researchers overturned the leading theories of the day on the cause, spread, and control of yellow fever; they also presented sound new theories that were proven very quickly in practical application. By the end of 1901, Havana was free of yellow fever for the first time in a hundred years. By 1905, the disease was banished from both Cuba and the United States." "Every victory has its costs as well as its triumphs. One Army Board member was killed in action by yellow fever; another was severely wounded by the disease. One was soon forgotten by history, while another became an enduring symbol of the can-do American military and medical men so revered in the early twentieth century. Yellow Jack is a testament to both their tragic sacrifices and their stunning accomplishments." --Book Jacket.

Contents:

Preface

Introduction: the forgotten scourge

Yellow fever comes to America

The capital under siege

Nothing but a yellow fever

Yellow fever moves south

The nation threatened

Yellow fever's odd couple

Walter Reed

Spanish bullets and yellow fever

The opportunity of a lifetime

"A soldier's chances"

Putting it all together

Affirmation

Presentation

Recognition

Historic application

Yellow fever after Walter Reed

Epilogue: After Cuba

Afterword: Yellow fever today.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 259-270) and index.

ISBN:

0471472611

9780471472612

OCLC:

55671399

Publisher Number:

99985905762