The Present Illness

Alyssa Burgart & Arghavan Salles
  • 5.0 (19)
  • 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. Robots, Research & Rubik's Cubes

    5D AGO

    Robots, Research & Rubik's Cubes

    Unethical research in Guinea-Bissau; Robots won’t fix maternity care deserts; Louisiana tries to extradite California doctor. Americas public health system teeters on the edge of an ICU admission thanks to the abysmal leadership of RFK Jr and his Clown Car of Public Health officials. This week, the doctors discuss the origins of proposed unethical and exploitative research in Guinea-Bissau. Next, Louisiana attempting to extradite a California doctor for prescribing abortion medications. And Dr. Oz thinks robotic ultrasound machines will close Alabama's maternity care desert. Marley is not interested in the US buying his country. Trump’s “Great Healthcare Plan” Unethical research in Guinea-Bissau Inside Medicine Guardian article about the response from the African CDC and officials in Guinea-BissauRolling Stone gets the receiptsCriticism of researchers in VaccineHarriet Washington’s Medical ApartheidAbortion News Louisiana hopes to extradite a California physicianDr. Oz’s on robot ultrasounds in AlabamaA robot-assisted ultrasound machine and a robotic-assisted surgery deviceRFK Jr slammed for criticizing Germany’s “interference” in the patient-physician relationship.ProPublica: Women With High-Risk Pregnancies Have Limited Options Under Abortion Bans💊Take Two and Call Me in the Morning Arghavan’s carousel of owl impressionsBeginner method to solving Rubik’s cubesEmily Elbert's country blues skillsMerlin BirdIDLoved it? Send us a text! Thanks for listening to The Present Illness with Drs. Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart! Follow us on TikTok and Instagram @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart Editing by Alyssa Burgart Theme Music by Joseph Uphoff Social Media by Arghavan Salles

    1h 6m
  2. Too Much Propofol

    JAN 16

    Too Much Propofol

    This week: famed author's son dies after anesthesia, the "war on protein", and Arghavan's views on protests in Iran. Join Arghavan and Alyssa as they into the 'war on protein' narrative propagated by RFK Jr, the tragic story of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's toddler son’s death following an anesthetic in Nigeria, and the ongoing protests in Iran. They discuss: New Dietary Guidelines, AKA the end of non-existent " War on Protein" Kevin Klatt, PhD, RD (Univ. of Toronto) analyzes the new dietary guidelines in plain languageThe death of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s 21 month old son on Wednesday, January 6. His family attributes his death to anesthesia care at EURACARE Multispecialist Hospital in Victoria Island, Lagos. Read about the reported conditions around his death in the Nigerian paper The Guardian. The hospital has denied improper care.Adichie is best known for her breakout novel, Americanah, and her 2011 TED Talk “Why We Should All Be Feminists”You can review the World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists’ Workforce MapCurrent events in Iran Massive protests have been ongoing in Iran for the past few weeks12,000 protesters killed in IranVideos of the Kahrizak forensic center show bodies in body bagsIranian regime charges families for the bodies of their loved ones💊Take Two and Call Me in the Morning💊 JB Star learns how to do the Dougie (here’s a tutorial for anyone inspired to learn!)Noah Wyle’s PSA lambasting RFK Jr on Jimmy Kimmel Live.SNL’s Marcello Hernández in American BoyLoved it? Send us a text! Thanks for listening to The Present Illness with Drs. Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart! Follow us on TikTok and Instagram @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart Editing by Alyssa Burgart Theme Music by Joseph Uphoff Social Media by Arghavan Salles

    1h 12m
  3. Time to Block Grok

    JAN 9

    Time to Block Grok

    Activation Warning: This episode discusses SA, CSAM, state violence.  In the first feverish episode of The Present Illness in 2026, the Doctors discuss the tumultuous events of winter break, including significant changes in vaccination policies, a big win for abortion rights, ICE actions in Minnesota, and the dangers of Elon Musk’s Grok. Abrupt CDC Child Vaccine Rollback AAP, APHA lawsuit against HHS moves forward Grok’s gross contribution to the winter break. Elon happy to push Grok, and the content is worse than what’s on X. “Take It Down Act”. 404 Media coverage. NCII - report (stopncii.org) Get X removed from the app store - directions. Go to the App StoreSearch for XScroll to “report a problem”Select “Pornography or sexual content”Then select “Predatory behavior toward children”Then write a brief description, eg, “This app allows the creation and distribution of non-consensual sexually violent images and child sexual abuse material via Grok. Please remove this from the App Store.”Wyoming Supreme Court blocks ban on abortion and abortion medication!  ICE shot and killed Renee Good in Minnesota. JD Vance video praising law enforcement. NYTimes’s video analysis. January 6 insurrection-versary. NPR video of January 6 and January 6 archive. The White House’s revisionist history J6 site. Jack Smith testimony. “Presidential Memoranda” NSPM-7 on domestic terrorism. 💊Take Two and Call Me in the Morning💊 Georgi Arthur makes a castle with her lipsFilm: One Battle After Another. Here is a thoughtful criticism.Visible and Loved it? Send us a text! Thanks for listening to The Present Illness with Drs. Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart! Follow us on TikTok and Instagram @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart Editing by Alyssa Burgart Theme Music by Joseph Uphoff Social Media by Arghavan Salles

    1h 6m
  4. White House's Fever Dream Photoshoot

    12/19/2025

    White House's Fever Dream Photoshoot

    In their final episode of 2025, Drs. Salles & Burgart perform a brief examination of the Vanity Fair exclusive featuring Trump's new White House staff. Our physician hosts dissect the viral photoshoot that's causing more raised eyebrows than a Botox convention, with special attention to the inflammatory rhetoric surrounding Susie Wiles and her supporting cast of characters. The physicians perform a thorough examination of HHS cutting AAP funding while also funding an extremely unethical study of the Hepatitis B vaccine, news of HHS abandoning Hepatitis B vaccine recommendations for newborns, and Idaho’s anti-scientific tossing of school vaccine mandates (and Florida showing symptoms of the same). The doctors discuss ethical complexity in mitochondrial risk assessment for anesthesia in the setting of bombing of boats off the coast of Venezuelan. Resources: Interview with Vanity Fair photographer, Christopher AndersonRaeShanda Lias’s video about the Vanity Fair photosCDC adopts ACIP’s anti-scientific recommendation on Hepatitis B vaccinationLecture on emerging anesthesia safety concern in kids. (I would stop at the Q&A because the speakers are not prepared to answer several genetic & safety questions)DHS’s original post about remigration. Here is the post with the added context.Alyssa’s paper: Pregnancy Testing without ConsentPregnancy Justice’s report: Pregnancy as a CrimeKeeping Police out of Pregnancy Care (Fact Check: the second author of the essay is the CEO of Physicians for Reproductive Health)Stephanie Tillman’s paper on opt-in consent💊Take Two and Call Me in the Morning💊 Taylor Ann Gallo’s makeup tipsGlenn DeVar’s first drag video and a more recent Loved it? Send us a text! Thanks for listening to The Present Illness with Drs. Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart! Follow us on TikTok and Instagram @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart Editing by Alyssa Burgart Theme Music by Joseph Uphoff Social Media by Arghavan Salles

    59 min

  5. 12/13/2025

    Widening gender divide? Blame Nick Fuentes.

    In this episode, the doctors perform a clinical examination of the pathological messaging aimed at young men by right-wing influencers like Nick Fuentes. They dissect the misogyny spreading through social media platforms, with particular attention to the inflammatory rhetoric that leads to dangerous attitudes toward women. The prognosis? With a strong dose of media & gender literacy, recovery is possible. Touré’s fact checks on the Diddy doc (this & this); Jeff Pearlman’s insights. Keffe D is set to be on trial in 2026 for the murder of Tupac Shakur. If you go down this rabbit hole, let us know!More on fake email addresses created by boys to antagonize their classmatesPew dataArghavan’s viral video about the growing ideological gender gapInternational survey data showing Gen Z's disparate views on gender equalityJesse Mack Butler storyScott Galloway’s Notes on Being a ManKristen Ghodsee’s Why Women Have Better Sex Under SocialismFact Check: Women were not able to have their own bank accounts or credit without a man until the Equal Credit Opportunity Act of 1974. Here’s how the act came to be. 💊Take Two and Call Me in the Morning💊 Arghavan shared the Diddy dance trend Here is a video of Diddy’s performance at the MTV Awards (that inspired the trend below)Here are a few videos of folks making fun of Diddy dancing and supposedly mourning Biggie’s death from @the.only.v, @kidrawofficial, and @toolie_xoAlyssa loves the reaction videos about the adversaries physicians face Physician Associate Yiannis K. gives his top 5 adversaries, football styleActivation Awareness: This episode contains discussions of misogyny, sexual v Loved it? Send us a text! Thanks for listening to The Present Illness with Drs. Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart! Follow us on TikTok and Instagram @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart Editing by Alyssa Burgart Theme Music by Joseph Uphoff Social Media by Arghavan Salles

    56 min

  6. 12/05/2025

    The Professor Will See You Now (If They Still Have a Job)

    In this week's episode, Drs. Salles and Burgart perform a critical examination of academic freedom under attack, focusing on the viral case of an Oklahoma pre-med student who's created a fever pitch of controversy by turning in shoddy work and targeting her transgender professor. The doctors dissect how right-wing influencers are turning classroom disagreements into national culture war symptoms, with concerning implications for academia's immune system. Our hosts investigate the alarming trend of politically-motivated complaints against university professors. From Indiana University to Texas A&M, faculty are experiencing acute cases of administrative panic when confronted with student outrage—often resulting in terminal employment outcomes. Fact Check: The correct way to reference people from Somalia is Somali, not Somalian. We apologize for the error! Links Here’s more about Samantha Fulnecky and the story at the University of OklahomaHere’s more about the instructor (Jessica Adams) who was removed from teaching her class at Indiana UniversityHere’s more about the instructor (Melissa McCoul) who was fired at Texas A&M and the findings of the faculty committee that reviewed what happenedJennifer Freyd’s DARVO concept - Deny-Attack-Reverse Victim and Offender💊Take Two and Call Me In The Morning 💊 Here’s one of Haley Dortch’s videos. You’re welcome!Somebody, Somewhere on HBOHow I escaped MAGA! Critical thinking woke me up.Nurse Johnn on being unprofessionalHere’s Jeff Hiller’s book Actress of a Certain AgeLoved it? Send us a text! Thanks for listening to The Present Illness with Drs. Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart! Follow us on TikTok and Instagram @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart Editing by Alyssa Burgart Theme Music by Joseph Uphoff Social Media by Arghavan Salles

    55 min

  7. 11/29/2025

    The Atlantic Lost Its Fact Checkers

    The doctors perform an emergency triage on the state of public health leadership this week, starting with a scathing dissection of The Atlantic's profile of RFK Jr. that seemingly skipped the fact-checking department. Drs. Salles and Burgart administer a strong dose of reality as they examine how mainstream media continues to platform dangerous health misinformation with fewer guardrails than a pediatric rollercoaster. Their differential diagnosis extends to the newest clown to emerge from the Clown Car of Public Health - the CDC's latest deputy director Ralph Lee Abraham. An avid COVID vaccine skeptic with min-bogglingly illogical public health positions, we're in for more shenanigans out of the nation's top health administration.  Between discussions of pertussis vaccine efficacy and the EPA's concerning moves on PFAS, asbestos, and air pollution regulations, this episode delivers a thorough examination of how public health leadership impacts everyday Americans - no insurance preauthorization required. Joy: Take Two And Call Me In The Morning Alyssa recommends the dark comedy show, Pluribus (AppleTV)"Just look at the degree on that chick" and Dr. Turner’s post on TwitterDistractingly Sexy - I can’t believe this trend is from 2015… In response to Nobel scientist Tim Hunt stating, “Let me tell you about my trouble with girls … three things happen when they are in the lab … You fall in love with them, they fall in love with you and when you criticise them, they cry.”)Fact check: The large study Arghavan mentioned was Danish, not Swedish. Apologies! Links The Atlantic article about RFK JrThe New Yorker article by Tatiana SchlossbergInformation about the pertussis vaccine (as part of Tdap); adults should get a booster every 10 yearsMore on Ralph Abraham, the new CDC Deputy DirectorOn the Trump administration’s approval of PFASOn the Trump administration’s moves regarding particle pollutionOn the Trump administration’s moves regarding asbestos in talcTo learn more about Loved it? Send us a text! Thanks for listening to The Present Illness with Drs. Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart! Follow us on TikTok and Instagram @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart Editing by Alyssa Burgart Theme Music by Joseph Uphoff Social Media by Arghavan Salles

    1h 1m

  8. 11/22/2025

    Labor & Dismissal

    Activation Awareness: This episode discusses serious pregnancy complications and the dismissal of women's health concerns. In this week's episode of The Present Illness, Drs. Arghavan and Alyssa deliver a stat consultation on two viral stories about Black women receiving substandard obstetric care. With surgical precision, they dissect the case of Karrie Jones at Dallas Regional Medical Center, who was kept in a wheelchair for admitting questions while in active labor, and Mercedes Wells, who was turned away from Franciscan Hospital in Indiana only for her husband Leon to deliver their baby on the side of the road. Their differential diagnosis includes systemic racism, dismissal of women's pain, and healthcare systems operating with more red tape than gauze. This TikTok from OB-Gyn Shannon Clark gives her expert take. Fact check: Texas did not disband their maternal mortality review committee—Georgia did, after ProPublica reported on deaths in Georgia. Resources mentioned: 2025 March of Dimes Report Card Allyson Felix: Tori Bowie Can't Die In VainTierra Walker’s death due to lack of abortion accessProPublica’s reporting on what happens when someone who needs an abortion can’t get one—and how the system fails them once they have a child: ProPublica’s Post-Roe American archivesBrittany Watts on her experience being arrested after a miscarriage Another woman was arrested for having a miscarriage at a fast food establishmentOn the woman being prosecuted in South CarolinaTexas' so-called abortion-trafficking lawsSouth Carolina’s bill to punish abortion with death penaltyArghavan’s essay on maternal and infant mortality after DobbsLooking for ways to help by volunteering or donating? Nonprofits  Loved it? Send us a text! Thanks for listening to The Present Illness with Drs. Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart! Follow us on TikTok and Instagram @ThePresentIllness Credits Production by Arghavan Salles and Alyssa Burgart Editing by Alyssa Burgart Theme Music by Joseph Uphoff Social Media by Arghavan Salles

    59 min
See All (16)

5
out of 5
19 Ratings

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
    16
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Present Illness
  • Show Website
    The Present Illness

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