Talk:Speculum (medicine)

Currently
Currently, the article has a picture of a hello people of the internet in the background of the picture referring to Philippe Ricord and stating that he developed a speculum in 1834; however, the article does not mention Ricord anywhere else, and refers to J. Marion Sims as the developer of the vaginal speculum. However, at that time, Sims was only 21. A bit of elaboration on the history of the vaginal speculum would be much appreciated, as currently the image is only vaguely tied in to the article. Also, it should be mentioned that the Sims article has an illustration of his speculum. --LostLeviathan 2 July 2005 14:44 (UTC)

" The specula is illegal in many states, due to the fact that it causes damage to the vaginal opening." Is this correct? It seems odd at the end of the article, not mentioned anywhere else..

This article contradicts itself near the end.

I did some copyediting, and removed the copyediting-needed template... However, I know very close to nothing about the article's topic, so someone who does should give it a fact-check. Bushytails 00:46, 3 April 2007 (UTC)
 * The speculum is not illegal in the United States, and even in very conservative countries, it is perfectly legal because of its medical use.98.225.230.65 (talk) 07:50, 4 May 2010 (UTC)

Hymen?
I've long been curious: Are vaginal specula only used on females whose hymens have already been broken? It seems to me like they would break the hymen, if it isn't already broken. Gringo300 19:27, 16 May 2007 (UTC)


 * There does exist the so-called "virgin speculum". The name is inadequate,
 * and the idea behind the name(to defend the patriarchal morality) is even worse.
 * KSM-2501ZX, IP address:= 200.155.188.4 (talk) 17:07, 12 January 2008 (UTC)


 * the concept of the hymen seal is pretty much a myth. --86.135.81.194 (talk) 22:19, 13 October 2008 (UTC)


 * I was examined with a speculum while my hymen was intact, it wasn't a big deal and the hymen didn't tear. And yes, the idea of some sort of vacuum-packed seal is a big myth.  Most hymens have one or more large (comparative) holes in them, that's why young girls can use tampons without ever tearing their hymen.  The vagina itself is rather large on it's own.  Also, this idea that being examined or using a tampon or playing sports somehow makes you "not a virgin" is totally ridiculous.98.225.230.65 (talk) 07:48, 4 May 2010 (UTC)

Images
de:Spekulum has a fast choice of different modells.--Nemissimo (talk) 22:45, 30 January 2008 (UTC)

Other types of speculum
This article is on the medical speculum but only talks about one type, would be nice to add some information on all the others like the Nasal for example. 202.137.171.119 (talk) 18:48, 28 March 2008 (UTC)

Lack of sources/contradictory info
The claim that murderer Ted Bundy used a speculum to rape a victim is presented with no source. This web site reports that Bundy was suspected, but not convicted, of such a crime: http://www.members.tripod.com/~VanessaWest/bundy.html. I.e., he cannot be said to have done it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.96.127.232 (talk) 15:13, 9 May 2010 (UTC)

Name
So why's it named for the latin word for mirror? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.73.70.113 (talk) 01:03, 16 May 2010 (UTC)

History section incorrect
The part in the history section about the duckbill + modern speculum being invented by Sims is completely incorrect. You can look at images of his speculum and quickly see that it is not a bivalve/duckbill design, nor similar to the speculum used in modern routine gynecological exams.

The first duckbill/bivalve/hands-free speculum was invented by Marie Ann Boivin in 1825. Images of her design are easy to find. (Sims invented his in the 1840's and it has to be held in place with one hand.) Her design has been modified over time, but the modern speculum is bivalve and much much closer to Boivin's.

I realize no one will probably see this, but I don't know how to do edits myself, so here's hoping.

There is a huge section that was added all by one anonymous user and full of errors:

Revision as of 20:24, 7 March 2021 2,575 BYTES ADDED, 2 YEARS AGO Added more complete history of speculum use and a short cultural history 66.58.201.71 (talk) 19:28, 14 January 2024 (UTC)