title: [Literature memories about diphtheria: Mark Twain, W.G. Sebald and Stendhal syndrome].
abstract: Memories of W.G. Sebald from the diphtheria he suffered as a child, gave rise to a discussion about the origin of classic clinical descriptions and the traps memory tends. Good examples of the latter are some experiences of Stendhal, who must also be distrusted given his hypersensitivity, which gave name to a psychosomatic syndrome. Mark Twain, a more practical man, brings us back to reality with a funny story about the terror the disease caused in the late nineteenth century. This leads us to remember isolation measures and topical treatments from the period immediately preceding the antitoxin. They included manual removal of the pseudo membranes, maneuver that led Marañón to misinterpret a painting by Goya on a scene of "Lazarillo de Tormes".
authors: Hospital Luis Calvo Mackenna, Chile. oncemayor@gmail.com
authors: Walter
authors: W
authors: Ledermann
mesh_terms: D004165:Diphtheria / Q000266:history*; D004324:Drama / Q000266:history; D005197:Famous Persons; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D008513:Medicine in Literature; D010151:Paintings / Q000266:history; D014925:Wit and Humor as Topic / Q000266:history