[Past and present--the roots of our modern concept of disease in 19th century clinical practice and science].
Historically speaking, our current clinical conceptions of disease are derived from 19th century science and clinical practice. In the early 19th century, large hospitals with hundreds of patients were erected for the first time. This provided "material" to which the physicians could apply their new diagnostic techniques and tools: percussion and auscultation, aided by the newly invented stethoscope. Eventually, what was found at the bedside was systematically compared with what was discovered on the autopsy table. This clinical research programme was challenged by, though later combined with, the experimental physiology and "laboratory medicine" of men like François Magendie and Claude Bernard. Their strong programme to introduce pure science, i.e. physics and chemistry, into medicine was paralleled by further developments in the old solidistic pathological tradition; an improved microscope and new techniques for preparing tissues for the microscope, led to the development of truly microscopic anatomy and cellular pathology. The idea that disease may be caused by microscopic living organisms was tested by means of strict experimental, scientific methods by men such as Louis Pasteur and Robert Koch; and our current conception of infectious disease is still very similar to that of the first microbiologists of the 1870s and 80s. The last 19th century root of our modern conceptions of disease discussed in the present essay is the visualization of the interior of the body--indeed, the visualization of disease--by X-rays.
Sundström
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Ersta vårdetiska institut, Stockholm.
D000715:Anatomy / Q000266:history; D001294:Attitude to Health; D003933:Diagnosis; D004194:Disease; D005060:Europe; D049672:History, 19th Century; D006801:Humans; D011871:Radiology / Q000266:history; D009626:Terminology as Topic
Då som nu--om våra moderna sjukdomsuppfattningars rötter i 1800-talets klinik och naturvetenskap.