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"Don't go to bed with a malaria mosquito:" exploring World War II medical posters

After exploring Stanford's collection of historical medical images last week after a tour of the School of Medicine, I got hooked. Hooked on historical medical images -- a quirky interest tailor-made for the internet. Turns out the National Institutes of Health's U.S. National Library of Medicine maintains a massive image library, one that includes some fabulous propaganda posters from World War II, including the lady mosquito with the alluring proboscis (above).

Others in the World War II poster collection focus on venereal diseases, recruiting nurses and doctors, encouraging blood donations and even curbing noise or visiting the dentist.

And that's just World War II posters. Its Flickr collection is tantalizing, kicking off with a series of medical oddities reminiscent of Philadelphia's Mütter Museum. It's quite addictive - just warning you.

Previously: A trip down memory lane: Stories from the early days of the School of Medicine, #ACT4NIH seeks stories to spur research investment and Examining the impact of psychological distress on soldiers' spinal injuries
Images courtesy of U.S National Library of Medicine

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