Would you be alive, sans modern medicine?

[hel_ana]

I saw this in another forum I read, and thought it was kind of interesting.

What would have killed you in the days before antibiotics, reliable surgery, and so forth? Would you still be alive?

What I've had that *wouldn't* have killed me:

The nearsightedness might have been a factor if I'd been born a long long time ago. But unless we're talking way before the advent of communal living, it probably wouldn't have killed me.

I had tonsilitus 12 times before my fifth birthday, and once a year from my fifth till my 18th. (And yes, I've still got the suckers.) Given that they exist to be infected, and thus represent the body's natural defenses, I'll assume this *wouldn't* have killed me.

My wisdom teeth were only taken out because the bottom two didn't grow all the way in. They were straight, not impacted, so I don't see this as an issue.

I have nasty allergies, including one to dust that left me with a blocked eustacian tube for 3 years, when I worked at a store housed in a converted factory. Arguably, however, allergies are much more common now than they were before the advent of modern medicine. So I doubt they'd be a factor.

What I've had that *might* have killed me:
I had bronchitus a few times, once for about a year. (I neglected to go to the doctor. Once he gave me the drugs, it cleared up quite quickly.) Because of that, and my allergies, my whole ear/nose/throat and respiratory system is somewhat compromised -- I get blockages easily, and am much more prone to bouts of bronchitus than I was earlier in my life. I can imagine that, pre-antibiotics, I might have ended up with a case of chronic bronchitus, or that I would be more likely to contract TB, since it wouldn't yet have been eradicated (where I lived).

What I've had that *would* have killed me:
Nothing at this point. I might have had something to worry about in a couple of years.

So yeah, I figure I stand a good chance of being alive without modern medicine. I don't think the quality of life would have been that great, but hey, that wasn't the question. ;)

Any takers?

Comments

[the-nita.livejournal.com]

This one is easy - LB - if modern surgery didn't exist, I definately wouldn't have made it, and quite possibly, he wouldn't have either.

[hel_ana]

But would you have made it to the point of getting pregnant with LB?

[the-nita.livejournal.com]

Possible - though it's questionable - I've gotten enough semi-major damage and needed whackloads of anti-biotics (yay for blood infections)...

Probably?