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From the AUA History Committee: We want YOU to see Battlefield Urology at #AUA21!
By: Ronald Rabinowitz, MD, FACS, FAAP | Posted on: 06 Aug 2021
At the AUA Annual Meeting, the Science & Technology Hall is a must-visit stop for thousands of meeting attendees from around the world. In addition to giving visitors access to learn where urology is heading–the latest medical and technological breakthroughs in urology–the Science & Technology Hall also provides an opportunity to look back at where urology has been with the annual history exhibit. Presented by the AUA’s William P. Didusch Center for Urologic History, the exhibit uses the lens of history to educate and demonstrate ways in which our specialty has grown over time.
This year’s exhibit, Battlefield Urology Booth (#2028), showcases ways in which the practice of urology has been impacted by war and conflict, how military medicine adapts and how advances from physicians in uniform translate to civilian practice.
Our Guest Curator this year is Maryland urologist Dr. Mark Edney, a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve and veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Together with AUA Historian Dr. Ronald Rabinowitz, Dr. Edney has gathered artifacts and stories from centuries of wartime medicine to assemble a clever exhibition showing key points where weaponry evolution intersects with critical advances in patient care that have changed how we practice medicine over time. They also showcase lessons learned from urological injuries during wartime, and celebrate the urologists, trauma surgeons and allied health professionals who, through their time in uniform, have contributed to state-of-the-art care for patients around the world.
Some of the must-see artifacts in this year’s exhibit include:
- World War II Pro-Kit–used by American troops to prevent venereal disease
- World War II gas mask (early versions contained asbestos in the filters)
- Urological prosthetics and instruments
- Modern-era protective clothing
- Munitions display of model explosive devices from the 19th and 20th centuries
- First generation da Vinci® Surgical System (Standard) introduced in 1999
Battlefield Urology will also shine light on health policy efforts around urological injuries in the military population, including the AUA’s successful efforts in passing legislation to study urotrauma in veterans.
Learn more about the Didusch Center for Urologic History and other exhibits by visiting https://www.UrologicHistory.museum.