Karin Bruwelheide handles an amputates limb that dates back to the Civil War. The bones were discovered by scientists at Manassas National Battlefield Park in Virginia. Scientists at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History have been analyzing the bones to learn more about them and who they may have belonged to. Meredith Rizzo/NPR hide caption
An operating room in a hospital in Ethiopia. arnitorfason/Getty Images hide caption
Surgeons at the University of Michigan are prescribing fewer opioids to reduce the risk of addiction. John Moore/Getty Images hide caption
Doctors often prescribe more opioid painkillers than necessary following surgery, for a variety of reasons. Education Images/UIG via Getty Images hide caption
On October 30, 1935, a Boeing plane known as the "flying fortress" crashed during a military demonstration in Ohio — shocking the aviation industry and prompting questions about the future of flight. National Archives hide caption
Joseph Lister directing the use of carbolic acid spray in one of his earliest antiseptic surgical operations, circa 1865. Bettmann Archive hide caption
Carmen Algeria, a survivor of the mass shooting in Las Vegas, was admitted to Sunrise Hospital. She had been shot in the leg and on Oct. 2 was awaiting surgery. Marcus Yam/LA Times via Getty Images hide caption
Amponsah believes that "God heals and the people heal themselves." He says his role as a surgeon is to facilitate the healing process. Jason Beaubien/NPR hide caption
Health workers from Doctors Without Borders give emergency treatment to a newborn baby in Sierra Leone in 2014. Lam Yik Fei/Getty Images hide caption
An anesthesiologist at work. Caiaimage/Sam Edwards/Getty Images hide caption
The defensive mucus of the Arion subfuscus slug has inspired materials scientists trying to invent better medical adhesives. Nigel Cattlin/Visuals Unlimited/Getty Images hide caption
Arthritis of the knee is very common, and isn't helped by arthroscopic surgery, a study finds. BSIP/UIG via Getty Images hide caption
Dr. James Baker holds a photo of his son, Max, who had been sober for more than a year and was in college when he relapsed after surgery and died of a heroin overdose. Craig LeMoult/WGBH hide caption
Medics tend to an Iraqi counterterrorism fighter injured in a clash with ISIS forces near the village of Bazwaya, on the eastern edge of Mosul. Bulent Kilic /AFP/Getty Images hide caption
The underwater construction skills of the caddis fly larva have caught the interest of bioengineers. The larva tapes and glues pebbles together to form a sturdy protective case. Josh Cassidy/KQED hide caption
Ten-year-old Matthew Husby gets some low-tech comfort from his father after surgery at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford in Palo Alto, Calif. Heidi de Marco/Kaiser Health News hide caption
Dr. Forster Amponsah is one of two surgeons at the Koforidua Regional Hospital in Ghana. Trained in Cuba, he came home because he felt his skills were needed in Africa. Jason Beaubien/NPR hide caption
A woman with a cut on her cheek and trouble seeing with her left eye was admitted to Craig Joint Theater Hospital at Bagram Air Field, Afghanistan. X-rays showed a projectile that surgeons decided to remove. Forbes et al. 2016/Journal of Neurosurgery hide caption
Cessation of breathing is a rare, but serious risk for some children who take cough syrup or painkillers that contain codeine, research shows. Advisers to the FDA say no one under 18 should take the drug. iStockphoto hide caption
We all get by better with a little help from our tunes. iStockphoto hide caption
A program based at Sinai Hospital in Baltimore offers a two-day series of assessments for older surgeons, evaluating "physical and cognitive" function. iStockphoto hide caption
A surgeon and nurse anesthetist a baby by emergency cesarean section at a hospital in Rwanda. Amber Lucero Dwyer/Courtesy Lifebox Foundation hide caption
Blaze Bioscience is commercially developing the "paint," which glows when exposed to near-infrared light. Courtesy of Blaze Bioscience hide caption
