Castuner

The Present Illness

Alyssa Burgart & Arghavan Salles

Society’s running a fever, and two sharp-witted physicians are on the case. Surgeon-scientist Arghavan Salles dives into social media’s wildest trends, while anesthesiologist-bioethicist Alyssa Burgart follows news and legal cases for their ethical twists. Together, they examine the cultural, political, and public health symptoms of our time with scalpel-sharp analysis, unflinching questions, and enough humor to keep us all going.

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Episodes

59 episodes

  1. Veterans are struggling to get healthcare. Here's why. 58:29
  2. Midterms Healthcare Wins! 1:04:03
  3. The One with Matthew Perry 1:06:39
  4. You Can See... Everything?!?! 1:03:56
  5. Poisoned his coworker, but walks free? Plus, get ready to watch You Can See Everything. 1:08:04
  6. Is the plague back? 1:02:01
  7. Why is Jane Doe suing Cornell and Seven Students? 1:16:27
  8. Ms. Rachel Defends Kids 48:54
  9. Our Host Sues the Feds 1:06:44
  10. Math Attack and Mifepristone 59:29
  11. Measles and Misconduct 1:07:55
  12. Farewell Dolly plus AOC's Eggs 1:03:45
  13. How Racism (Not Plagiarism) Killed Dr. Jason Arday 1:12:21
  14. We'd like to jump to a new timeline, please 1:15:39
  15. Fauci's Diary and RFK Jr's Misinformation Meltdown 55:50
  16. The Future of Consent with Dr. Zed Zha 48:07
  17. (Mis)Adventures in Public Health 48:49
  18. So Much Poop, So Little Healthcare Access 58:35
  19. Rigor Tortoise? Mitch McConnell’s Health and Bye-bye Graham Platner 1:03:58
  20. Supremely Bad Birthday Gifts for America 1:06:50
  21. Aliens, Propaganda & Lessons from New York Primaries 1:07:10
  22. Pride Under Trump 2026 54:06
  23. Birth Autonomy with Dr. Jen Lincoln 57:15
  24. Flesh Eating Flies and Project 2025 "Efficiency" Destroys Science 58:25
  25. Pope Leo takes on AI; Ashley St. Clair Spills Hot MAGA Tea 1:20:05
  26. Replay: The Professor Will See You Now (If they still have a job) 55:36
  27. Rich Folks Complain About Helicopters Carrying Sick Kids and Shingles Vaccine May Prevent Dementia 57:58
  28. Telehealth Abortion under Attack, plus Bedside Betrayal in Canada Court’s Sloka Case 56:31
  29. Surgeon Takes Out Liver by "Accident"?! 58:04
  30. Everybody Pees + Abuse Academy 59:00
  31. Shut Down Dilley Detention Center with Dr. Lara Jones 57:11
  32. We're Overwhelmed Too, But We'll Take the Cool Moonshots 59:30
  33. Forced Sex Testing and Forced C-sections 59:24
  34. Mayo Med Student + ICE at the Airport 59:52
  35. A Testosterone Filled Nothing Burger (Plus Rare Good News!) 1:06:14
  36. Pro-Iran Hackers Attack US Healthcare Giant Stryker 58:49
  37. Persian Politeness with Dr. Kaveh Hoda 1:21:55
  38. New War with Iran and Bad Energy with Casey Means 1:56:06
  39. Men's Hockey Goes From Hero to Zero 1:06:32
  40. ICE's Dystopian Daycare (+ Gisèle Pelicot) 1:09:28
  41. Epstein's Dirty Medical Money (plus Space Babies!) 59:33
  42. Protect Trans Kids, Not Peter Attia 54:55
  43. Diabolical Dictators and Online Trolls 1:12:29
  44. Robots, Research & Rubik's Cubes 1:05:50
  45. Too Much Propofol 1:11:40
  46. Time to Block Grok 1:06:22
  47. White House's Fever Dream Photoshoot 58:54
  48. Widening gender divide? Blame Nick Fuentes. 56:14
  49. The Professor Will See You Now (If They Still Have a Job) 55:08
  50. The Atlantic Lost Its Fact Checkers 1:00:36