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Today we are about to learn something interesting and conflicting facts about medical logo used in the world of Medicine by the Medical fraternity and care-takers.

image sourceby Mareklug and Gatunek_leczniczy.svg CCo2.5 CCo2 CCo1
A rod with a snake curled around it. Well, the stick in this logo is the asklepian, or rod of Asclepius(also called Asklepios).In ancient Greek mythology, Asclepius was the son of Apollo and the human princess Coronis, and the god of medicine and healing.Asklepios have been a real person who was renowned for his gentle remedies and humane treatment of the mentally ill. He was able to restore the health of the sick and bring the dead back to life.Many stories have been recited regarding the myths of Asclepius.

In one telling, Zeus killed Asclepius with a thunderbolt for disrupting the natural order of the world by reviving the dead, while another version states that Zeus killed him as punishment for accepting money in exchange for conducting a renascence. After he died, Zeus placed Asclepius among the stars as the constellation Ophiuchus, or "the serpent bearer."

The snake that is curled around the rod may symbolize rejuvenation, because snakes shed their skin.The Greeks regarded snakes as sacred and used them in healing rituals to honor Asclepius, as snake venom was thought to be remedial and their skin-shedding was viewed as a symbol of rebirth and renewal.Today, the staff of Aesculapius is a commonly used symbol of medicine.

The rod itself has more to do with medicine than the facts that a doctor-god carried it.Many explanations have been emerged.Some commentators have interpreted the symbol as a direct representation of traditional treatment of Dracunculus medinensis or the Guinea worm disease.The worm emerges from painful ulcerous blisters. As the blisters burn, it causes the patient to immerse the affected area in water to cool and soothe it. The worm senses the temperature change and discharges its larvae into the water. The traditional treatment was to slowly pull the worm out of the wound over a period of hours to weeks and wind it around a stick.The modern treatment may replace the stick with a piece of sterile gauze, but is otherwise largely identical.

THE DIFFERENTIATING FACTS

A similar symbol, the Caduceus, the staff of the Greek god Hermes whose Roman counterpart was Mercury, and is therefore the sign of a herald. Hermes did not have any connections to the medicine. The symbol originated when Mercury once attempted to stop a fight between two snakes by throwing his rod at them, whereupon they twined themselves around the rod, and the symbol was born.The medical use of the Caduceus has a modern origin only. It is believed that the U.S. Army Medical Corps adopted it as their symbol in 1902 after the insist of a single officer who probably assumed a medical link after seeing its used as a printer’s mark on 19th century medical texts. The mark was used by different publishers in their books because they thought Hermes, as the messengers and diffusers of knowledge.

image source by USG (The US Army Medical Corps Branch Plaque. The adoption, in 1902, of the Caduceus for US Army medical officers popularized the (mis)use of the symbol throughout the medical field in the United States.)

The Rod of Asclepius is consider as the dominant symbol for professional healthcare associations and institutions in many part of the world. A survey found that around 62% of professional healthcare associations used the rod of Asclepius as their symbol. The same survey found that 76% of commercial healthcare organizations used the Caduceus as their symbol.
So as per the surveyor the different concepts regarding this medical logo exists because the professional health associations and institutions have real understanding of these two symbols, contrary to those of commercial healthcare organization who are more likely to be concerned with the visual impact a symbol will have in selling their products.

image source(The Caduceus is usually depicted with two snakes and a pair of wings and is often used mistakenly as a symbol of medicine.)

THE EMERGING CONCEPT

Serpents in many ancient cultures have been associated with fertility. There are many reason for it. Probably because the serpent could slough its skin, it was believed to possess the power of rejuvenation and immortality. Probably because the serpent lived under the earth, it was believed to be the keeper of the secrets that transforms seeds into plants. The snake's ability to change from a lethargic stage to one of rapid activity symbolized the power to convalesce from an illness. Farmers in many part of world worship serpents in the hope they have a good harvest. Women worship serpents so that they are fertile and their husbands, virile.
These practices, for centuries have offered hope to people who believed that producing children was their biological duty. They offer the psychological support that today counselors provide.

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References:-

4.Parks text book of Community Medicine
1.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rod_of_Asclepius 2.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caduceus 3.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4439707/ 5.https://watchjerusalem.co.il/540-does-the-serpentine-symbol-of-healing-have-a-biblical-origin

THANK YOU!!

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