What is Medical: Definition and 491 Discussions

Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient and managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment or palliation of their injury or disease. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness. Contemporary medicine applies biomedical sciences, biomedical research, genetics, and medical technology to diagnose, treat, and prevent injury and disease, typically through pharmaceuticals or surgery, but also through therapies as diverse as psychotherapy, external splints and traction, medical devices, biologics, and ionizing radiation, amongst others.Medicine has been practiced since prehistoric times, during most of which it was an art (an area of skill and knowledge) frequently having connections to the religious and philosophical beliefs of local culture. For example, a medicine man would apply herbs and say prayers for healing, or an ancient philosopher and physician would apply bloodletting according to the theories of humorism. In recent centuries, since the advent of modern science, most medicine has become a combination of art and science (both basic and applied, under the umbrella of medical science). While stitching technique for sutures is an art learned through practice, the knowledge of what happens at the cellular and molecular level in the tissues being stitched arises through science.
Prescientific forms of medicine are now known as traditional medicine or folk medicine, which remains commonly used in the absence of scientific medicine, and are thus called alternative medicine. Alternative treatments outside of scientific medicine having safety and efficacy concerns are termed quackery.

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  1. C

    Medical Student

    Hello everyone
  2. G

    Hello! Is there anyone out there?

    Hello everyone, new member here. I'll be doing my diploma in Medical Physics this year so I'll be sure to have many questions about particle physics and nuclear physics since I couldn't quite wrap my head around some of those concepts in undergrad. Hope to interact with more of you soon. P.S...
  3. P

    What would happen if I pinch my nose while I sneeze?

    hey everyone, I currently have an ear infection. I'm watching to see if it gets better and it seems like yesterday was the worst of it. Today it's better: I can completely clinch my jaw with minimal pain. I think I'll be ok by Tuesday, but I'm curious about something. I'm curious what would...
  4. Astronuc

    Science Fair winner studies Claudin-5, a potential biomarker

    https://www.yahoo.com/news/16-old-pocketed-50-000-135300578.html https://fluidsbarrierscns.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12987-019-0123-z I have read that chronic stress increases levels of cytokines. It's complicated. https://academic.oup.com/jes/article/3/7/1302/5489212...
  5. F

    What is the connection between physics and metaphysics?

    I'm an electrical engineer working in the medical device industry. As a hobby, always interested in both physics and metaphysics, want to know what this world is about at its core. Always open to any seriously and honestly driven discussion as long as it is not offending and has the goal of...
  6. murshid_islam

    Medical What are some cases (if any) of people coming back from the dead?

    I am looking for cases (if any) where patients were pronounced dead by doctors and then came back to life. Are there any such cases? I am not looking for cases of near-death experiences. I'm also not looking for cases where patients were mistakenly declared dead when they were still alive.
  7. BWV

    British Medical Journal study finds parachutes ineffective

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  8. 256bits

    What was the original purpose of the chainsaw?

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  9. Agongo 4

    Courses Becoming a Biomedical Engineer with a Bsc in Medical Physics

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  11. qntm

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  12. M

    Programs I'm a medical physicist, how can I get into astronomy/astrophysics?

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  13. Q

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  14. A

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  15. F

    Other Undergraduate thesis topic ideas in medical physics

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  16. E

    COVID Examining the Efficacy of Virus Masks: CDC Findings

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  17. Lyra

    Programs Exploring a Career in Medical Physics: Advice from PhD Physicists

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  18. AryaKimiaghalam

    Physics Automation in Medical Physics

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  19. AryaKimiaghalam

    Programs Top Medical Physics Programs in Texas and Florida

    Hi all, Hope you are all safe and doing well. I recently made a decision to potentially move to the states permanently. I am currently in my fourth year of undergraduate degree in physics at a Canadian university (3.82 cGPA, 3.96 in major) and interested in a career in medical physics. For this...
  20. bhobba

    COVID Medical Information On Brisbane Lockdown

    I originally posted in the general section that where I am in Brisbane we are now in lockdown. Further medical information has emerged on what is happening with 8 new cases overnight so I will post it here...
  21. snatchingthepi

    Programs Exploring Benefits of Biomedical Engineering PhD vs. Medical Physics PhD

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  22. jim mcnamara

    US Pandemic related medical resource shortages

    US health care services under severe strain from pandemic. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7399859/ Would the United States Have Had Too Few Beds for Universal Emergency Care in the Event of a More Widespread Covid-19 Epidemic? R Jones, Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 Jul...
  23. akshitha135

    Can you become an astronaut if you have a medical degree?

    How do you get into research if you are interested in medicine and want to work in research with space? Can you also become an astronaut but not be involved with space missions, thanks for your answers.
  24. snatchingthepi

    Programs PhD in Medical Physics vs Biomedical Engineering

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  25. .Scott

    COVID Medical Science, Medical Ethics, COVID-19

    There is a COVID-19 issue that has been brewing for at least a couple of months: Is the primary COVID-19 communication vector aerosols? But only in the past couple of weeks has this issue started to come to a boil - as in this article...
  26. K

    Programs Radiation Therapist to Medical Dosimetrist or Physicist

    Hello! I’m currently in the process of earning my bachelors of science in radiation therapy. I plan to get my masters in dosimetry, but I was wondering if anyone know if it was possible for a medical dosimetrist to advance their career by earning their PhD in medical physics. Essentially, I’m...
  27. BigPapaSmurf123

    Physics How to become a Certified Medical Physicist in the UK?

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  28. W

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  29. Faisal Moshiur

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  30. areamer02

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  31. B

    From MSc Nuclear Physics to PhD medical physics is it possible?

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  32. callie123

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  33. B

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  34. magnetic flux

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  35. E

    Job Skills Medical physics: additional training

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  36. BillTre

    What Are 10 Medical Myths That Have Been Debunked by Recent Studies?

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  37. L

    Medical assembly design help

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  38. snatchingthepi

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  39. BillTre

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  40. T

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  41. A

    Programs Medical physics vs theoretical physics

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  42. AndresPB

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  43. Fatima7

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  44. A

    Programs Advice for 2nd Year Physics Student on Pursuing Medical Physics

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  45. M

    Physics Medical Physics from the UK to Canada

    Hi I am a medical physicist in the uk with a desire to transition to Canada. I am in the process of applying for permanent residency via the Canada express entry. We have a similar organisation to CAMPEP that accredits our physicists in the UK, called IPEM. I have an accredited MSc from IPEM...
  46. D

    Understanding the Cardiac Cycle: Diastole & Systole

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  47. E

    Other Ph.D. after medical physics residency?

    Finished up my masters in medical physics a couple years ago and am about to complete my residency. Have been considering getting a Ph.D. since that's always been a life goal but I'm facing a conundrum: as far as I know, I will likely end up with a similar job whether or not I get a Ph.D. I want...
  48. T

    Engineering Pathway from medical physics to biomedical engineering?

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  49. prashantakerkar

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  50. AgusCF

    I Solving Planar Fluence: Ratio of Electrons per cm2

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