The Present Illness

Alyssa Burgart & Arghavan Salles
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  • MEDICINE

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.

  1. Forced Gene Testing and Surgery

    1 DAY AGO

    Forced Gene Testing and Surgery

    IOC resumes harmful sex gene testing; forced c-sections with zoom court rooms; The Lancet profiles our host!; A woman goes to the moon; Alyssa recommends bioethics books The Lancet profiles Arghavan! Sally Ride, 100 tampons (song) IOC sex testing International Olympic Committee’s new policy Andrew Sinclair’s essay Tested podcast Caster SemenyaImane KhelifEero MäntyrantaSteven van de Velde allowed to compete in 2024Fact Check: The Namibian runner is Christine, not Christina, Mboma. Also, astronaut Victor Glover is the first Black person to reach the moon!Forced C-sections Court ordered C-sections & hearingsRinat DrayRefusal of Medically Recommended Treatment During PregnancyBook recommendations Testosterone: An Unauthorized Biography Policing the WombMedical BondageRadical Reproductive JusticeFatal Invention Killing the Black Body Medical Apartheid💊Take Two and Call Me in the Morning💊 DogsKit Kat heistGeese migrationThanks for listening to The Present Illness!  Follow us on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles & Alyssa BurgartEditing by Alyssa BurgartTheme Music by Joseph UphoffSocial Media by Arghavan Salles

    59 min
  2. Mayo Med Student + ICE at the Airport

    27 MAR

    Mayo Med Student + ICE at the Airport

    Mayo medical student’s videos go viral in the bad way; medical misogyny; Match Day memories; ICE at the airports; husbands learn about pelvic exams Mayo Medical Student: Dr. Chloe Nazra Lee on Nick Baumel and medical misogynyGynogirl on DSM5Dr. Shannon ClarkDr. Jenn LincolnFeminist Midwife on pelvic careDr. Milhouse’s videoLindsey Shelton’s videoAlyssa’s Ethics ConsultMen trying to understand stirrupsICE in America's Airports: SAVE America ActThe Brennan Center puts the SAVE America act into contextLongest TSA wait times in historyWoman detained by ICE at SFOProject 2025Arghavan’s round-up on ICE at airports (including Steve Bannon’s comments)Tragic LaGuardia accidentTravel tips in the ICE eraACLU’s summary of your rights dealing with ICE at the airportInformation on our rights from the National Immigration Law CenterSummary of changes to USPS that could affect mail-in votingTrump’s crusade against mail-in voting💊Take Two and Call Me in the Morning💊 Druski’s Erika Kirk videoDruski’s NASCAR/redneck videoUnicorn Day origin story and what it’s likeFact check: Michael Flynn is being paid $1.25 million, not $1.5 m Thanks for listening to The Present Illness!  Follow us on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles & Alyssa BurgartEditing by Alyssa BurgartTheme Music by Joseph UphoffSocial Media by Arghavan Salles

    1 hr
  3. A Testosterone Filled Nothing Burger (Plus Rare Good News!)

    20 MAR

    A Testosterone Filled Nothing Burger (Plus Rare Good News!)

    RFK loses ACIP lawsuit; Pediatricians fight ICE; Boy Boss Documentary disappoints us (Review of Inside the Manosphere); WNBA players get a raise March madness: Women’s tournament, men’s tournament Fire celebration: Chaharshanbe suri gatherings in IranPersian New YearFact check: Arghavan misspoke when she said the name of one of the manfluencer/boy bosses. His name is Justin, not Jeremy.  Peds vs. ICE; ACIP Lawsuit Victory: Pediatricians demand children be removed from ICE detentionsHere is the letter Drs. Patel, COzzo, and Jones sent to Kristi Noem last monthJudge blocks RFK Jr from scaling back childhood vaccinesJudge Murphy’s orderReview of Inside the Manosphere Inside the ManosphereHS Tikky TokkyMyron GainesPlaying the feminist card💊Take Two and Call Me in the Morning💊 WNBA players reach new agreementCharity Ekezie on AfricaCharity Ekezie on EgyptWomen’s face coverings near the Straight of HormouzSNL’s MAHAspitalThanks for listening to The Present Illness!  Follow us on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles & Alyssa BurgartEditing by Alyssa BurgartTheme Music by Joseph UphoffSocial Media by Arghavan Salles

    1hr 6min
  4. Pro-Iran Hackers Attack US Healthcare Giant Stryker

    13 MAR

    Pro-Iran Hackers Attack US Healthcare Giant Stryker

    Stryker cyber attack by Handala Hackers; Iran’s new supreme leader - is he even alive?; DOGE dummy Justin Fox can’t explain DEI; Timmy Chalamet messes with the wrong opera house DOGE & DEI: Arghavan’s video about the DOGE bro who can’t even define DEIStryker Attack: Ransomware Attacks and Data Breaches in US Health Care SystemsAl Jazeera reportingHow ‘Handala’ Became the Face of Iran’s Hacker CounterattacksCybercrime integration in Iran’s governmentIran Power: Summary of Mojtaba Khamenei’s statementEnglish translation of Mojtaba Khamenei’s full statementOverview of Mojtaba Khamenei via NYTSummary of Iranian women’s soccer team situationIranian women’s soccer team lands in MalaysiaArghavan’s video about the Iranian women’s soccer teamKhamenei senior had expressly stated in the past he did not want his son to succeed him because that goes against the Islamic revolution, part of which was to end hereditary succession.Trump had said appointing Mojtaba was “unacceptable” to him, which may have further incentivized the Islamic Republic of Iran to choose him.💊Take Two and Call Me in the Morning💊 Smiling Kokaka (quokka eating a leaf)Rodent eating peas in a podSummary of Timothée Chalamet’s ballet and opera controversySeattle Opera’s Timothee promoMetropolitan Opera’s postAntarctica DiveRescued Marine VeterinarianThanks for listening to The Present Illness!  Follow us on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles & Alyssa BurgartEditing by Alyssa BurgartTheme Music by Joseph UphoffSocial Media by Arghavan Salles

    59 min
  5. Persian Politeness with Dr. Kaveh Hoda

    9 MAR

    Persian Politeness with Dr. Kaveh Hoda

    Our first guest is Dr. Kaveh Hoda of The House of Pod! Persian Tarof culture; a new supreme leader in Iran; the US can't decide on its war messaging; a disagreement over favorite Persian foods. Iran episode on The House of PodIsraeli oil strikes in TehranAll the Shah's Men: An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East TerrorIranian women's soccer players labeled traitorsChurchill’s Hiccup/ Winston's SneezeSamin Nosrat’s top 10 Persian recipesThanks for listening to The Present Illness!  Follow us on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles & Alyssa BurgartEditing by Alyssa BurgartTheme Music by Joseph UphoffSocial Media by Arghavan Salles

    1hr 22min
  6. New War with Iran and Bad Energy with Casey Means

    6 MAR

    New War with Iran and Bad Energy with Casey Means

    Overnight war with Iran; Casey Means’ confirmation hearings; Newsom sucks Hillary & Bill ClintonNewsom diminishes trans peopleKansas revokes trans people’s driver’s licensesWar in Iran Iranians celebrateSchool bombing; gravesGolestan Palace damagedIRGC threatsLatest tally of deathsUS sinks unarmed Iranian shipWH's video gameBreaking Veteran's armCasey Means Senate confirmation hearingCarte BlancheStrong’s The Bad Science of Casey Means’ Good EnergyMeans’ exit from residencyMAHA, Means, and Money💊Take Two & Call Me in the Morning Tiny Chef wins multiple Emmys; acceptance speech; dances/exercises; cancelledDoctor falling asleep under anesthesiaWaiting for the beat to drop in MRIThanks for listening to The Present Illness!  Follow us on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles & Alyssa BurgartEditing by Alyssa BurgartTheme Music by Joseph UphoffSocial Media by Arghavan Salles

    1hr 56min
  7. Men's Hockey Goes From Hero to Zero

    27 FEB

    Men's Hockey Goes From Hero to Zero

    State of the Union bingo card; US Mens Hockey squanders the good vibes; RFK Jr’s HHS gets sued yet again for illegally messing with vaccination; Punch updates; Angry Quilters; Gen Z slang Men’s Hockey Squanders Good Will Some of the US men’s hockey team reactions to the response to their “locker room talk”Ellen Hughes’s commentsHilary Knight’s reaction to the US men’s hockey teamArghavan’s post about the US men’s hockey team cavorting with the presidentHockey mom Sara WilesAndy Murray knows how to stand up for womenAnother Lawsuit Against Antivax HHS: AGs Kris Mayes (AZ)and Rob Bonta (CA) announce lawsuit against HHSFDA’s refusal to evaluate Moderna flu vaccine (and later reversal of this decision)Moderna no longer investing in new late-stage vaccine trials💊Take Two and Call Me in the Morning Arghavan’s post summarizing the story of Punch, the little monkey abandoned by his motherQuiltCon: The Quilters are angryGen Z writes the Pasco Library script77 year old art curator Alison Luchs uses Gen Z slang to teachThanks for listening to The Present Illness!  Follow us on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles & Alyssa BurgartEditing by Alyssa BurgartTheme Music by Joseph UphoffSocial Media by Arghavan Salles

    1hr 7min
  8. ICE's Dystopian Daycare (+ Gisèle Pelicot)

    20 FEB

    ICE's Dystopian Daycare (+ Gisèle Pelicot)

    Go Team USA! Weird Workout with RFK Jr; ICE harming kids in detention; Gisele Pelicot speaks out about her husband's abuse Hilary Knight is the greatest US women’s hockey scorer everRFK Jr and Kid Rock working outDystopian Daycare in Dilley Hundreds of kids detained > 20 day Flores rule limit.Two measles cases confirmed at the Dilley family detention center2-month-old Juan Nicolás developed respiratory illness requiring hospitalization. Family deported immediately after hospital release.18 month old Amalia, also sick with respiratory illnesses, discharged back to ICE custody and allegedly denied needed meds after hospitalization.Read letters written by children in ICE detention facilityPelicot’s Book Release A review of Gisèle Pelicot’s book: A Hymn to LifeMme Pelicot’s interview with the New York TimesDaughter Caroline Darian’s book: I’ll Never Call Him Dad AgainPhilip Young pleads guiltyThe Telegram group with 70,000 men giving tips on how to SA womenSwedish man accused of selling sex with his wifeGerman man convicted of drugging and raping his wife💊Take Two and Call Me in the Morning Arghavan’s carousel of “First in my bloodline” (the tweet)Eileen Gu laughs at journalist after winning 2 silver medalsThanks for listening to The Present Illness!  Follow us on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles & Alyssa BurgartEditing by Alyssa BurgartTheme Music by Joseph UphoffSocial Media by Arghavan Salles

    1hr 9min
See All (27)

About

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.

Information

  • Creator
    Alyssa Burgart & Arghavan Salles
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    27
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Present Illness
  • Show Website
    The Present Illness

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