March 21 in Medical History
14 entries: discoveries, epidemics, drugs and the people who shaped medicine.
Observed today
- World Down Syndrome Day (International)
Events
- Dutch RC bishop Beckers declares himself in favor of birth control
- American medical drama series "Ben Casey", starring Vince Edwards and Sam Jaffe, ends a five season run on ABC-TV
- The first cases of the 1983 West Bank fainting epidemic begin; Israelis and Palestinians accuse each other of poison gas, but the cause is later determined mostly to be psychosomatic.
- Sports HistoryCanadian Rick Hansen sets off on his 'Man in Motion' world tour in his wheelchair raising money for spinal research, from Oakridge Mall, Vancouver (successfully completes May 1987)
- Bangladeshi woman with two uteruses safely gives birth to twins 26 days after giving birth to another child
- Film & TV HistoryEmilia Clarke reveals she suffered two brain aneurysms while filming "Games of Thrones" in an article for "The New Yorker"
- Italy records record daily death toll of 793 for COVID-19 as the worldwide death tolls surpasses 12,000 with 299,000 known infections (Johns Hopkins figures)
- Brain-Chip Patient Plays ChessElon Musk 's Neuralink company posts a video of a patient playing chess online using a brain implant
Born on this day
- James DouglasScottish physician and anatomist, born in Scotland (d. 1742)
- Walter TewksburyAmerican track and field athlete (Olympics, 1920 - 2 gold, 2 silver, 1 bronze), and dentist, born in Ashley, Pennsylvania (d. 1968)
- Walter GilbertAmerican physicist and chemist, Nobel Prize laureate
Died on this day
- Wilson Cary SwannAmerican physician, philanthropist, social reformer, and namesake of landmark fountain in Philadelphia's Logan Square, dies at 69
- Nawal el-SaadawiEgyptian feminist writer and activist (Women at Point Zero), dies at 89