Medical oddity
Encyclopedia
A medical oddity is an unusual predicament or event which takes place in a medical context. Some examples of medical oddities might include: "lost and found" surgical instruments (in the body), grotesquely oversized tumor
s, (human) male pregnancy
, rare or "orphan
" illnesses, rare allergies
(such as to water), strange births (extra or missing organs), and bizarre syndromes (such as Capgras delusion
).
Medical oddities can also include unusual discoveries in purchased food
, such as finding a severed finger or thumb in a hamburger.
Medical oddities are also known as medical curiosities. While not strictly paranormal
, they are classically Fortean
.
Periodicals
Tumor
A tumor or tumour is commonly used as a synonym for a neoplasm that appears enlarged in size. Tumor is not synonymous with cancer...
s, (human) male pregnancy
Male pregnancy
Male pregnancy refers to the incubation of one or more embryos or fetuses by male members of any species. In nearly all heterogamous animal species, offspring are ordinarily carried by the female until birth, but in fish of the Syngnathidae family , males perform this function...
, rare or "orphan
Orphan drug
An orphan drug is a pharmaceutical agent that has been developed specifically to treat a rare medical condition, the condition itself being referred to as an orphan disease...
" illnesses, rare allergies
Allergy
An Allergy is a hypersensitivity disorder of the immune system. Allergic reactions occur when a person's immune system reacts to normally harmless substances in the environment. A substance that causes a reaction is called an allergen. These reactions are acquired, predictable, and rapid...
(such as to water), strange births (extra or missing organs), and bizarre syndromes (such as Capgras delusion
Capgras delusion
The Capgras delusion theory is a disorder in which a person holds a delusion that a friend, spouse, parent, or other close family member has been replaced by an identical-looking impostor...
).
Medical oddities can also include unusual discoveries in purchased food
Food
Food is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for the body. It is usually of plant or animal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals...
, such as finding a severed finger or thumb in a hamburger.
Medical oddities are also known as medical curiosities. While not strictly paranormal
Paranormal
Paranormal is a general term that designates experiences that lie outside "the range of normal experience or scientific explanation" or that indicates phenomena understood to be outside of science's current ability to explain or measure...
, they are classically Fortean
Charles Fort
Charles Hoy Fort was an American writer and researcher into anomalous phenomena. Today, the terms Fortean and Forteana are used to characterize various such phenomena. Fort's books sold well and are still in print today.-Biography:Charles Hoy Fort was born in 1874 in Albany, New York, of Dutch...
.
Further reading
Books- Gould, George Milbry, Anomalies and Curiosities of Medicine, W. B. Saunders, ©1896, Philadelphia, LC Control Number: 07028696
- Jones, Kenneth Lyons, Smith's Recognizable Patterns of Human Malformation, Saunders, ©1997, Philadelphia, LC Control Number: 96016722, ISBN 0-7216-6115-7
Periodicals
- Fortean TimesFortean TimesFortean Times is a British monthly magazine devoted to the anomalous phenomena popularised by Charles Fort. Previously published by John Brown Publishing and then I Feel Good Publishing , it is now published by Dennis Publishing Ltd. As of December 2010, its circulation was approximately 18,000...