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Book Reviews
| John Pearn, Medical Butterflies: Flitting Vignettes of Medical History (Brisbane: Amphion Press, 2008). ISBN 978-1864999372 (PB). B&W and colour illustrations, 32 pp.
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| Butterflies assume great importance in agriculture and horticulture, as one agent of biotic pollination, but they are also admired for their beauty and grace in the wider community. Many readers may be speculating about the link between medicine, butterflies, and medical history. Sometime surgeon general, Major General Professor John Pearn, AM, RFD, has published the quintessential work that has established these links and more; perhaps even indulging a passion for these wonderful creatures. Medical Butterflies: Flitting Vignettes of Medical History is presented as an A5 publication that would fit easily into the briefcase or carry bag. The full colour cover is strikingly adorned with one of the more recognisable of butterflies, the Monarch Butterfly. The work contains an introduction, four main chapters, 19 plates (18 in colour), Acknowledgements, a section about the author, and a comprehensive reference list. There is no foreword, preface, table of contents, glossary, or index. The stated aims of Medical Butterflies are (i) to compile 'a lexicon of medical biography' of those who's names 'record the lives and works' of various physicians from ancient times to the present day (p. 5); (ii) to analyse 'the use of butterflies and symbols as metaphors for convalescence from ill health and the successful cure from disease' (p. 5); and (iii) to summarise 'some historical medical associations' (p. 5). |
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The main chapters of Medical Butterflies include 'Introduction,' 'Flitting Memorials,' 'Medical Meraphors,' 'Doctor-Lepidopterists,' and 'Butterflies and Medicine.' The work documents the medical history associated with the naming of butterflies, such as with Machaon and Podalirius, immortalised in the naming of two swallowtail butterflies (p. 8). Machaon and Podalirius are described by the author as the 'first two doctors in the heritage of western medicine' (p. 13) and the butterfly named after Podalirius by Linnaeus (author of Systema Naturae), Iphiclides podalirius, is splendidly shown in a full colour plate (p. 13). It also includes extensive contemporary references to butterflies, particularly their adornment on greeting cards, stamps, tattoos, as well as their symbolism in areas such as the 'butterfly dance' (p. 12) and in advertising, using the example of the poster by Mission Australia, where the butterfly represents the 'flight-to-freedom from poverty and despair' (p. 18). The author also describes the contribution of Australian medical lepidopterists, such as Dr Alfred Jefferis Turner (1861–1947), who also discovered the link between white paint pigment (lead oxide) and lead poisoning in children (p. 23). |
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In line with the broad approach that this booklet takes, Medical Butterflies also describes the links between butterflies and every day medical practice, whether it be 'butterflies-in-the-stomach' (p. 24), butterfly needles or silk sutures, as well as describing some concerns of lepidopterism, such as the irritation, rashes and dermatitis that can be caused by some caterpillars. The medical references to butterflies is not comprehensive and there are a few other applications appearing in the literature recently, such as the malar butterfly flap in facial surgery, the butterfly retractor used in surgical endoscopy, and butterfly pseudo-glioma, but the book also misses some old favourites such as the malar butterfly rash seen in systemic lupus erythematosus. Indeed, a tattooed butterfly was thought to be the site of inoculation of atypical Mycobacteria in what was believed to be the first described case, a tale that might have expanded on the author's discussion on the potential risks of disease transmission of tattoos (p. 24). |
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There is probably little that the well known medical historian, Major General Professor John Pearn, AM, RFD, MD (Qld), PhD (Lond), HonDSc (James Cook), FLS, has not achieved. In addition to a distinguished career as a doctor-soldier, he has also had a highly successful academic and medical career at the University of Queensland and the Royal Children's Hospital. He describes himself as an 'enthusiastic naturalist' (p. 28); however this enthusiasm is also backed up by extensive research and a thorough knowledge and understanding of the field, for which the author is internationally renown. Indeed many species are named after John Pearn in recognition of his contributions to science and others are sure to follow. |
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The concise style makes Medical Butterflies: Flitting Vignettes and Medical History easy to read. The only regret of the reviewer is that the book is a limited edition. Nonetheless, it is sure to become an important addition to the esteemed portfolio of literary works represented by the Pearn Collection. |
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| PETER A. LEGGAT
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| JAMES COOK UNIVERSITY |
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