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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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| Was the biblical King David affected by hypothermia? | | Author(s) | Liubov Ben-Noun |
| Journal title | Journals of Gerontology: Series A, Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences, vol 57A, no 6, June 2002 |
| Pages | pp M364-M367 |
| Keywords | Hypothermia ; Directories ; Histories. |
| Annotation | Older people have suffered from hypothermia for thousands of years. This report analyses the first documented case of hypothermia as described in the Bible. The sentence, "Now King David was old and stricken in years, and they covered him with clothes, but he gained no warmth" indicates that hypothermia afflicted the biblical King David, who ruled Israel 3000 years ago. Environmental factors did not play a significant role in the development of hypothermia. Among various diseases, the most likely to cause immobility and subsequent hypothermia are dementia, senile osteoporosis, hyperparathyroidism, and malignancy. Of these diseases, malignancy is the most likely. Viewed by a modern doctor, the story of King David unfolds as possibly the earliest description of a patient affected by hypothermia, features of which have changed little through the ages. This report shows that the roots of contemporary geriatrics lead back to Biblical times. (RH). |
| Accession Number | CPA-020822210 A |
| Classmark | CTT: 69: 6A |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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