Medical Experiments: The Most Horrifying Aspects Of The Holocaust

*The Holocaust remains one of the most devastating events in human history. It claimed the lives of millions of people, including Jewish people, those a part of the LGBTQ+ community, disabled people, and many others (Blackmore, 2019). One of the most horrifying aspects of the Holocaust was the medical experimentations which were conducted on the prisoners within the Nazi-controled concentration camps. These experiments were cruel, inhumane, and conducted without the consent of the victims, leading me to believe that the research gathered should be completely disregarded. During the Holocaust, the Nazis conducted a range of medical experiments on prisoners within the concentration camps. These experiments were carried out by doctors who were

The Holocaust Encyclopedia informs us about an infamous experiment which was the testing of sulfonamide, a drug used to treat bacterial infections. Prisoners were infected with various types of bacteria and then were given sulfonamide to observe how effective it was. However, the doses were often too small to be effective, leading to the death of the prisoners as a result of untreated infections. In addition to drug testing, Nazi doctors also performed horrific medical procedures on prisoners, such as bone and muscle transplantation, sterilization, and amputation. These procedures were often done without anesthesia or proper sanitation, resulting in severe pain and an increased risk of

Caplan makes the interesting claim that the information gathered from the Nazis does have value, however, it is important to take into consideration the state in which the testing subjects were in during the time of experimentation. The testing subjects on which the experimentations were performed, were starving, dehydrated, sick, and under large amounts of stress. These factors could cause misleading results. Caplan’s claim of the importance of realizing the state of which the testing subjects were in during the time of experimentation is extremely useful because it sheds light on the unethical aspect of the medical research being conducted and also the limited value this research