The Clinical Etymologist
The Clinical Etymologist is a podcast devoted to curiosity, lifelong learning, and the quiet joy of medicine. Hosted by Dr. Kim—a general internist and self-appointed Clinical Etymologist—each episode explores the words we use in medicine to diagnose, to heal, and to make sense of the human condition. With a blend of language, history, clinical insight, and his unique sense of humor, Dr. Kim uncovers the hidden roots of medical terms—from the eponyms we invoke to the metaphors we overlook. This is a space for curious souls who still believe learning can be meaningful and fun.
Episodes
14 episodes
Knowledge Gap in Osmolar Gap
Mr. Alexander Kole presents with alcohol intoxication. Odd lab value is noted thathides more than it reveals. In this episode, Dr. Kim and his Padawan Layla explorethe clinical mystery of the osmolar gap — when numbers decei...
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Season 1
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Episode 14
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12:58
The Kissing Disease
Infectious mononucleosis reminds us that medicine often lives in the space between certainty and curiosity. The tests help, but the story — the pattern of fatigue, fever, and swollen nodes — still matters most. Every pat...
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Season 1
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Episode 13
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13:04
Ninety Nine Toy Boat
In this episode, Dr. Kim and his Padawan, Nina, rediscover the forgotten art of the respiratory exam—from tactile fremitus to percussion, from the German for 99 to toy boat. Through etymology, history, and bedside humor, they...
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Season 1
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Episode 12
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12:30
Celebrate Lactate
Three days of call. Three dozen consults. Three cups of coffee barely holding the Clinical Etymologist together. This is the story of what happens when exhaustion meets imagination — and a lactate lesson hidden inside a Matrix dream...
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Season 1
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Episode 11
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13:20
Pernicious Precision
The momentous discovery of Cobalamin 77 years ago made a macrocytic impact on medicine, saving millions of lives from their pernicious fate. In celebration, we take a subacute and combined degenerative dive into the world of Vitamin B12 defi...
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Season 1
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Episode 10
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13:57
Only A Second Year Student
The previous episode Letting Go, Gently was a heartfelt reminder of the human side of medicine, a glimpse into one of those moments that shape us as not just health care providers but also healers. Sometimes, we need to pau...
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Season 1
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Episode 9
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15:03
Special Episode : Letting Go, Gently
So far, our beloved clinical etymologist, Dr. Kim, has explored the roots of medical language through history, etymology, and clinical reasoning. But today is different. Instead of tracing the origin of a w...
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Season 1
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Episode 8
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4:40
Cranial Nerves Were All "Normal"
Today, we venture beyond the usual clinical vignettes and into the art of examination itself. In honor of Dr. Heinrich Quincke—who, in August 1891, performed the world’s first lumbar puncture in Kiel, Germany— we celebrate the neurologic...
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Season 1
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Episode 7
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19:27
The Cortisol Strikes Back : Part 2
In this episode of The Clinical Etymologist, the saga of the adrenal glands continues. Join Dr. Kim and his Padawan William as they navigate Cold War cortisol curves, Addison’s mysteries, and the art of stress-dose ste...
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Season 1
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Episode 6
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15:15
The Rise of Cortisol : Part 1
This is Part 1 of a two-part podcast all about the adrenal glands. In this episode, we go back to the beginning — to anatomy, etymology, and the history behind cortisol. We'll follow a curious medical student and discover how adrenal glands wer...
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Season 1
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Episode 5
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12:32
Asterixis : The Liver Flap
Asterixis: If it's not a liver tremor, what is it then?In this episode, Dr. Kim unpacks the etymology, pathophysiology, and clinical relevance of this peculiar sign. From hepatic encephalopathy to hidden thalamic lesions, we explore t...
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Season 1
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Episode 4
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12:29
Once Upon A Time In Philadelphia
In this episode, Dr. Kim travels back to the summer of 1976 — when veterans gathered in Philadelphia and unknowingly faced a microscopic enemy hiding in the air. Join us for an etymological dive into a bacterium that once wreaked havoc in...
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Season 1
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Episode 3
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11:28
30/20/10 Rule of Orthostatic Hypotension
In this episode, Dr. Simon Kim takes you on a head-spinning journey through the physiology, history, and humor behind orthostatic hypotension. What do a fainting patient, a Greek root word, and a Jedi medical student all have in common? You’re ...
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Season 1
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Episode 2
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11:34
