Telemedicine, the practice of medicine where doctors and patients are widely separated using two-way voice and visual communication, has a long history that dates back to the Middle Ages. However

Telemedicine, the practice of medicine where doctors and patients are widely separated using two-way voice and visual communication, has a long history that dates back to the Middle Ages. However, significant developments did not emerge until the growth of technology in the 20th century. The history of telemedicine can be traced back to an 1879 article published in the Lancet, where the authors talked about the transmission of medical knowledge over the telephone and conducting doctor’s appointments through the telephone in lieu of unnecessary office visits. In 1924, the Radio News magazine featured a "radio doctor" performing a "radio" office visit through a small screen with a young boy, and in 1948, two health care professionals transmitted the first radiographic images via telephone. It wouldn’t be until 1959 at the University of Nebraska that doctors used interactive telemedicine to send neurological examinations; this is often credited as the first case of real-time video telemedicine. In this post, we will explore the technology from 1925 that allowed doctors to remotely examine patients, how it worked, and the connection between the technology from 1925 and the esoteric knowledge associated with mirrors. What was the technology from 1925 that allowed doctors to remotely examine patients, and how did it work?In 1925, a group of doctors from the Chicago Radiological Society and the Chicago Medical Society built a remote medical examination facility at the First Regiment Armory in Chicago. The facility allowed doctors to remotely examine patients using radio and television transmitters, which had similarities to technology from 1888. The system included an autograph feeler, which was a device that allowed the doctor to control a robot arm from a distance. The robot arm had a camera on it that transmitted images back to the doctor, who could then examine the patient remotely. The system also included a cycle aerial, which was a device that could transmit and receive signals from a distance. The cycle aerial could pick up signals from the robot arm and transmit them back to the doctor, who could then view the images on a television screen.When did similar technology to that of 1925 first exist, and what implications does this have for the perceived novelty of the technology?Similar technology to that of 1925 first existed in 1906 when Willem Einthoven, the inventor of the electrocardiograph, first started experimenting with remote consultations via the telephone. In April 1924, Radio News magazine featured a "radio doctor" performing a "radio" office visit through a small screen with a young boy. These early experiments with telemedicine paved the way for the technology used in the remote medical examination facility in 1925. The development of telemedicine over the past century has proven beneficial in cardiology, psychiatry, surgery, and wound care. The Audio-Visual Connection: A Brief History of TelemedicineThe FoundationWillem Einthoven (1860–1927), the inventor of the electrocardiograph, first started experimenting with remote consultations via the telephone in 1906. In April 1924, the cover of Radio News magazine featured a “radio doctor” performing a “radio” office visit through a small screen with a young boy. In 1948, at a distance of 24 miles apart in Pennsylvania, two health care professionals transmitted the first radiographic images via telephone. It wouldn’t be until 1959 at the University of Nebraska that doctors used interactive telemedicine to send neurological examinations; this is often credited as the first case of real-time video telemedicine. Half a decade later, psychiatrists built a closed-circuit television link to allow physicians to provide psychiatric consultants at a staggering distance of 112 miles away at Norfolk State Hospital. From the groundwork laid by these advances, modern telemedicine