A triumphant decline?: Tetanus among slaves and freeborn in Brazil

Tetanus and other widespread endemic diseases of Brazil's early national period speak to intimate details of common life and give clues to big, vexing questions, such as why Brazil's population expanded dramatically at the turn of the twentieth century. Tetanus was for a long time one of B...

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Main Author: Ian Read
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Casa de Oswaldo Cruz 2012-12-01
Series:História, Ciências, Saúde: Manguinhos
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0104-59702012000500007&lng=en&tlng=en
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author Ian Read
author_facet Ian Read
author_sort Ian Read
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description Tetanus and other widespread endemic diseases of Brazil's early national period speak to intimate details of common life and give clues to big, vexing questions, such as why Brazil's population expanded dramatically at the turn of the twentieth century. Tetanus was for a long time one of Brazil's deadliest afflictions, especially among infants, but historians know very little about it. Using archival sources from across the Empire and early Republic, this article argues tetanus disproportionately killed the enslaved population, but gradually diminished in virulence for nearly all groups across the country by the second half of the 1800s. This decline should be attributed only partially to medical knowledge. Rather, indirect demographic and technological changes were more important factors in Brazil.
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publisher Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Casa de Oswaldo Cruz
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series História, Ciências, Saúde: Manguinhos
spelling doaj-art-912fc55538304b75ab858b3b38d09d9e2025-08-20T03:36:57ZengFundação Oswaldo Cruz, Casa de Oswaldo CruzHistória, Ciências, Saúde: Manguinhos1678-47582012-12-0119suppl 110713210.1590/S0104-59702012000500007S0104-59702012000500007A triumphant decline?: Tetanus among slaves and freeborn in BrazilIan Read0Soka University of AmericaTetanus and other widespread endemic diseases of Brazil's early national period speak to intimate details of common life and give clues to big, vexing questions, such as why Brazil's population expanded dramatically at the turn of the twentieth century. Tetanus was for a long time one of Brazil's deadliest afflictions, especially among infants, but historians know very little about it. Using archival sources from across the Empire and early Republic, this article argues tetanus disproportionately killed the enslaved population, but gradually diminished in virulence for nearly all groups across the country by the second half of the 1800s. This decline should be attributed only partially to medical knowledge. Rather, indirect demographic and technological changes were more important factors in Brazil.http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0104-59702012000500007&lng=en&tlng=entétanodemografiaescravidãodoenças endêmicasBrasil
spellingShingle Ian Read
A triumphant decline?: Tetanus among slaves and freeborn in Brazil
História, Ciências, Saúde: Manguinhos
tétano
demografia
escravidão
doenças endêmicas
Brasil
title A triumphant decline?: Tetanus among slaves and freeborn in Brazil
title_full A triumphant decline?: Tetanus among slaves and freeborn in Brazil
title_fullStr A triumphant decline?: Tetanus among slaves and freeborn in Brazil
title_full_unstemmed A triumphant decline?: Tetanus among slaves and freeborn in Brazil
title_short A triumphant decline?: Tetanus among slaves and freeborn in Brazil
title_sort triumphant decline tetanus among slaves and freeborn in brazil
topic tétano
demografia
escravidão
doenças endêmicas
Brasil
url http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0104-59702012000500007&lng=en&tlng=en
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