Abstract
This study presents the first full translation from Latin to English of the Linnaean dissertation Morbi Artificum or Occupational diseases, submitted by Nicholas Skragge in 1765. It consists of an essay that places the dissertation in historical and scientific context and of the translation. Skragge's thesis has not only significance in the history of occupational medicine but also provides a perspective on Linnaeus' thinking on dietetics. Skragge's doctoral thesis is one of the 186 academic dissertations defended by students of Carl Linnaeus. Prior to the present study, only three of these 186 dissertations have been translated from Latin to English in our own times. The first extensive compendium on occupational diseases by Bernardino Ramazzini, with the title De Morbis Artificum Diatriba, served as a blueprint for Skragge's thesis. The background for Skragge's thesis was Linnaeus' general interest in systematizing objects according to certain norms in biology, which methodology he also applied when classifying diseases in medicine. Also, Linnaeus' life-long emphasis on the importance of dietetics is evident in the thesis. Finally, in the era when Linnaeus lived (Age of Liberty), Sweden focused greatly on improving the country's economy. Since trade and industry were prioritized by the state, it was reasonable to map the diseases workers were prone to.
Highlights
The first comprehensive treatise on occupational diseases of workers was De Morbis Artificum Diatriba by Bernardino Ramazzini (1633-1714)
Collegium diæteticum includes a section on occupational diseases (Morbi artificum), which is a part of a broader chapter on Exercise and rest
(Submitted) with the greatest devotion to the judgment of good men[10]. Those whom I have to obey recommended that I, who was about to publish a public testimony of my education in medicine, should treat occupational diseases[11] in a short dissertation; especially since in the duty, which I perform at the court of our most merciful king, a big crowd of people, assigned to manual craftsmanship, are entrusted to my care and protection every day
Summary
The first comprehensive treatise on occupational diseases of workers was De Morbis Artificum Diatriba by Bernardino Ramazzini (1633-1714). In the 20th century, a new English translation was published in 1940 (Ramazzini, 1964). Following Ramazzini’s book, multiple academic dissertations on workers’ occupational diseases were published.
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