Another Connection Between Medicine and Fly Fishing

Okay, connections between fly fishing and medicine don't happen that often.  But when they do, man they are exciting (at least for a nerd like me.)  Last time we reported on a connection, it was about the EPA study that found 7 pharmaceutical drugs in fish sampled.  That was sort of stretch.  It wasn't like they said in the study that fishermen should practice catch and release because of these drugs... although they should.


But this time, we actually have a video for you made by Dr. Szlyk from Mary Washington Hospital in Fredericksburg, VA.  If you can't tell, I'm excited about this video.  I mean, it's the proverbial hat trick with regards to our blog:  1.Fly Fishing 2.Medicine 3.Virginia. (in case you couldn't tell from our uncreative blog title.)  I don't know who Dr. Szlyk is but I think I can safely assume that he's awesome at fly fishing...and at surgery using the da Vinci surgical robot.  




This video also begs the question, when is Renzetti going to jump on this bandwagon?  I mean, come on. Their MOST expensive fly tying vise is ONLY $939.85.  Seriously.  That pales in comparison to the $1.3 million price tag on a da Vinci robot "fly tying vise".  


Finally, I need to give credit where credit is due.  I didn't find this obsessively searching youtube for videos (despite what you may believe, I do study sometimes).  Rather, I found it courtesy of Moldy Chum.  

Finally a Connection Between Medicine and Fish

I'm pretty sure we raised a couple eyebrows at the Mulholland Society meeting in which the fate of our proposed medical fly fishing club was to be determined. I can just imagine the issues brought up... "What does this have to do with medicine?" "How will this help them get into competitive residencies?" "Who has time to fish when the USMLE 1 is only a year away?"

Thankfully they approved us, either out of pity or confused intrigue. But now, it appears we finally have some solid connections between medicine and flyfishing.

According to Scientific American, a recent study by the EPA and Baylor University researchers has found the presence of 7 pharmaceutical drugs in fish taken from rivers in Phoenix, Dallas, Chicago, West Chester, and Orlando. The drugs include norfluoxetine, diltiazem, and carbamazepine. So if you're feeling depressed, having seizures, and have high blood pressure... and you can't afford to hit up the pharmacy, why not go fishing?

I, on the other hand, am feeling pretty healthy so I'll just stick to the catch-and-release with barbless hooks. Unless it's crappie. For some reason, I have no qualms catching and keeping crappie. Perhaps it's the name.

Pic courtesy of UpNorth Memories - Donald Harrison