De Morbis Artificum Diatriba Research Articles

MORBI ARTIFICUM – A POST-RAMAZZINIAN ACADEMIC DISSERTATION ON OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES BY A PUPIL OF CARL VON LINNÉ

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.

The Relationship between Blood Circulation and Exercise Headache before and after the Publication of De Motu Cordis (1628): Comparison between the Scientific Thought of Girolamo Mercuriale (1530–1606) and Bernardino Ramazzini (1633–1714)

The relationship between physical activity, sports and headache is a topic of growing interest as testified by a variety of recently published papers. This correlation dates back to the Classical Age. The aim of this study is to understand how the concept of headache of vascular origin has evolved after the publication of the book De motu cordis by William Harvey (1578–1657). We analyzed and compared the books De arte gymnastica written by Girolamo Mercuriale (1601 edition) and De Morbis Artificum Diatriba written by Bernardino Ramazzini (1713 edition) focusing our attention on headache in the sportsman. By studying the De morbis artificum diatriba, it is clear that its description of the etiopathogenesis of exercise headache of cardiovascular origin is much more complete and precise than the one provided in De arte gymnastica. The limits of scientific knowledge of his time put Mercuriale at disadvantage, since cardiovascular physiology was not elucidated until 1628 with the publication of De motu cordis.

Lessons from Ramazzini for occupational health in the Asia-Pacific region.

The father of modern occupational medicine, an important branch of public health, was Bernadino Ramazzini. He was born in northern Italy in 1633 and lived a long and productive life dying 300 years ago in 1714.1,2 He studied medicine at the University of Parma where he became interested in disease related to a worker’s specific occupation. He was appointed to a chair at the University of Modena, but it was not until the age of 67, when most of his colleagues had already passed on, that he was appointed professor of medicine at Padua. The University of Padua is one of the oldest universities in Europe and has retained its reputation for excellence and is currently ranked first among Italian universities. Ramazzini’s book De Morbis Artificum Diatriba (Diseases of Workers) was first published in Modena in 1700 and was followed by a second edition from Padua after his appointment there in 1713. The first English language edition was published only 5 years after the initial Modena publication. His book on occupational diseases included chapters on the health hazards of chemicals, dust, metals, repetitive movements, and other musculoskeletal problems. In the work related problems of workers in 52 occupations were described. His book became the standard text for occupational medicine throughout Europe. He taught that physicians should add questions about their patients’ occupations to the standard list of questions that had been handed down from the time of Hippocrates. Ramazzini also laid the foundation for the development of modern public health as a social reform movement by describing the dangerous and degrading conditions in which laborers were required to work. He also practiced clinical medicine and was a strong advocate for the use of quinine, derived from the bark of the cinchona tree, in the treatment of malaria. At that time, malaria was common across southern Europe and of course was the scourge of those who ventured into tropical areas. Its prevention was impossible as there was no knowledge of its etiology. Ramazzini also described an increase in breast cancer in nuns compared with married women and thought that it was because of an unnatural lack of sexual intercourse. Modern epidemiology confirms the lower rate of breast cancer following pregnancy and of course with duration of lactation.3 Ramazzini was the first to describe many occupational diseases, including this description of repetitive strain injury, a condition that affects many factory workers in Asia:

A pioneer of public health, Bernardino Ramazzini.

2014 marks the tercentenary of the death of Bernardino Ramazzini, an academic who lived in the Duchy of Modena in the second half of the seventeenth century. This event represents an occasion to remember his thinking, which is remarkably anticipatory of some concepts and trends of modern public health. Although the main merit of Bernardino Ramazzini lies in his contribution to the knowledge of occupational diseases, which granted him the title of father of Occupational Medicine, his work deserves a more detailed and complete consideration. In fact, the systematic approach to the clinical presentation of diseases and their relationship to work, gathered in the famed treatise De Morbis Artificum Diatriba, resulted in little attention being paid to the preventive aspects of his thinking. The free spirit, the tension for searching, the love for the discussion characterize his scientific attitude, which spans from the anticipation of an epidemiologic approach to studies on the impact of air and climate, from workplace surveillance to suggestions for the protection of health, from proposals of primary prevention tools to recommendations of lifestyle behaviour, from educational issues to health promotion. His scientific, cultural and humanitarian stature is evidenced by his overall scientific works revealing the modernity of his thinking in the light of the present trend of public health focusing on the needs of people and promoting occupational health as an integral component of the health concept.

Health Disorders and Ergonomic Concerns From the Use of the Microscope: A Voice From the Past

To the Editor Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are an increasing health problem in workplaces.1 These disorders are a major cause of concern for several reasons: the health problem leading to workers’ disability, the lost time from work, and the social costs. MSDs affect workers in a variety of occupations, including pathologists working at the microscope.2 This letter aims at reviewing Bernardino Ramazzini’s observations of health disorders of subjects working in the second half of the 17th century. He observed a variety of MSDs among workers (such as sedentary workers, secretaries, learned men, people who do fine work, and goldsmiths) sharing exposure to risk factors potentially similar to those of professionals using a microscope. In the treatise De Morbis Artificum Diatriba (Diseases of Workers), Ramazzini3 described the relationship between noxious exposures to chemicals and physical agents with the occurrence of illnesses in more than 50 occupations in workers of that time.4 In particular, he observed that numerous health problems (such as sciatica, gibbus, valgoid condition, hernia, pain in different parts of the body, fatigue, arthritis, lameness, shoulder dislocation, and muscular tension) were associated with prolonged, violent, and irregular motion (as in blacksmiths, miners, carpenters, weavers, and others) and prolonged unnatural posture of a worker’s body (as in printers, tailors, goldsmiths, and …

Identifying carcinogenic agents in the workplace and environment

In Cancer Scroti,1 Sir Percivall Pott reports a new occupational disease, “the chimney-sweepers' cancer”. In reality, Pott does much more: he concludes that in these workers the disease originates from a lodgement of soot in the scrotum—the first attribution of an occupational cancer to a specific cause. Pott begins by citing De Morbis Artificum Diatriba (1700) by Bernardino Ramazzini (1633–1714), which describes diseases of workers in 40 occupations, and is recognised as the seminal work of occupational medicine.

1131 CELLO SCROTUM, 1974-2009

You have accessJournal of UrologyHistory of Urology1 Apr 20101131 CELLO SCROTUM, 1974-2009 Lawrence Wyner Lawrence WynerLawrence Wyner More articles by this author View All Author Informationhttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.juro.2010.02.2328AboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints ShareFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES In his seminal 1713 treatise, De Morbis Artificum Diatriba (Diseases of Tradesmen), Bernardino Ramazzini (1633-1714), the father of occupational medicine, included musicians as one of 52 occupations he described with various medical ailments peculiar to their work. Likewise, in 1887, the British Medical Journal (BMJ) became the first scientific periodical to publish an analysis of a musician's malady, “pianist's breakdown,” a study by G.V. Poore of muscle cramps caused by playing the piano. These endeavors spawned the field of performance medicine, which has grown to encompass multiple textbooks and journals dedicated to this topic, as well as a plethora of purported physical ailments ascribed to the challenges of playing various musical instruments. These conditions range from the serious (e.g. fiddler's neck, clarinetist's cheilitis) to the fanciful (e.g. Satchmo's Syndrome, guitar nipple). Perhaps the most bizarre of these was cello scrotum, first described by chemist John Murphy in a letter to the editor of the BMJ in 1974. Murphy and his wife, psychiatrist Elaine Murphy, had read a letter to the editor in a previous BMJ issue identifying guitar nipple, a condition supposedly consisting of areolar irritation in adolescent girls learning to play classical guitar. The Murphys, convinced that guitar nipple was bogus, wrote their own letter to the BMJ as a follow-up, claiming to have seen a cellist patient with scrotal dermatitis caused by long hours of scrotal contact with the vibrating body of his instrument. To their surprise, the letter was published in the BMJ, and began to be reported across the globe. Musicians unions in both the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union lobbied to have the condition listed as an industrial disease. Cello scrotum was referenced a dozen times in the peer-reviewed medical literature over the next 35 years, although skeptics questioned how the body of the cello could contact the scrotum if the instrument were properly played, and one wag commented that the affected cellists might be supplementing their meager incomes by sweeping chimneys! In any case, by Christmas 2008, the Murphys decided it was time to “come clean,” and sent the BMJ a letter of retraction which was published in January 2009, admitting that cello scrotum was indeed a high-brow hoax. The BMJ took the matter in stride, commenting that no one was harmed by the light-hearted deception, especially the Murphys (she sits on the board overseeing the British National Health Service and is a member of the House of Lords, and he is chairman of a brewery), and that the BMJ will continue its pioneering efforts on behalf of musicians' health. METHODS N/A RESULTS N/A CONCLUSIONS N/A Huntington, WV© 2010 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Volume 183Issue 4SApril 2010Page: e437-e438 Advertisement Copyright & Permissions© 2010 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.MetricsAuthor Information Lawrence Wyner More articles by this author Expand All Advertisement Advertisement PDF downloadLoading ...

Bernardino Ramazzini: the father of occupational medicine.

Bernardino Ramazzini was born on October 4, 1633, in the small town of Capri located in the duchy of Modula, Italy. He is credited with establishing the field of occupational medicine during his lifetime. His major contributions came after 1682, when Duke Francesco II of Modena assigned him to establish a medical department at the University of Modena. He was installed in the title of professor "Medicinae Theoricae." In 1700, Ramazzini was appointed chair of practical medicine in Padua, Republic of Venice, the premier medical faculty in Italy. In 1700, he wrote the seminal book on occupational diseases and industrial hygiene, De Morbis Artificum Diatriba (Diseases of Workers). Although Ramazzini is perhaps most well known for his work on exposure to toxic materials, he wrote extensively about diseases of the musculoskeletal system. In particular, he warned of the problems of inactivity and poor postures inherent in some jobs.

Headache among the educated in the century of enlightment

Owing to B. Ramazzini’s De morbis artificum diatriba, the 1700s may be considered as the century when occupational medicine was born. This paper considers Ramazzini’s treatise and some publications of the same century dealing with headaches as an occupational ailment of educated persons. Besides De morbis artificum diatriba, we also analyse De valetudine litteratorum by S.A. Tissot, Domestic medicine by W. Buchan, Della preservazione della salute de’ letterati e della gente applicata e sedentaria by G. A. Pujati and the Dizionario compendioso di sanità. In these works, headache is considered a typical illness of educated people, defined in a wide sense, close to the modern term “intellectual”. Head pain was regarded as the consequence of either a plethora of blood in the brain or tension in the head caused by mental concentration. No specific pharmacological therapy was suggested; instead, prophylactic measures were recommended, such as periodic interruptions of study, working areas that were well-ventilated and brightly lit, use of olive oil-burning lanterns and wax candles for evening study, abolition of toxic substances such as tobacco and alcoholic beverages, avoidance of the lying position while studying, and moderate consumption of legumes. Our investigation shows the attention given, in the century of the Enlightment, to headache caused by the professions requiring mental activity.

"De Morbis Artificum Diatriba." 1700-2000.

Bernardino Ramazzini was a renowned physician and a prolific writer, born in Capri in 1633. He is considered the father of occupational medicine for having written the first paper on workers' diseases (De morbis artificum diatriba). His Treaty on Workers' diseases included 53 different professions, one particular and specific method of analysis, and a methodological proposal to prevent these diseases. This essay supports the approach taken by the father of occupational medicine and confirms that the principles established in his work are applicable to this day. A fair tribute is paid to the man and his writings in the third century after their publication. The English version of this paper is available at: http://www.insp.mx/salud/index.html.

Bernardino Ramazzini: The Father of Occupational Medicine.

Bernardino Ramazzini was born in Carpi, Italy, in 1633. While he was still a medical student at Parma University, his attention was drawn to diseases suffered by workers. In 1682, when he was appointed chair of theory of medicine at the University of Modena, Ramazzini focused on workers' health problems in a systematic and scholarly way.1 He visited workplaces, observed workers' activities, and discussed their illnesses with them. The medicine courses he taught were dedicated to the diseases of workers.2 Ramazzini systematized the existing knowledge and made a large personal contribution to the field by collecting his observations in De Morbis Artificum Diatriba [Diseases of Workers]; the first edition was printed in Modena in 1700 and the second in Padua in 1713. Primarily on the basis of this work, Ramazzini is called “the father of occupational medicine.”3,4 Each chapter of the De Morbis Artificum Diatriba contains a description of the disease associated with a particular work activity followed by a literature analysis, workplace description, questions for workers, disease description, remedies, and advice. The clinical picture was directly observed by Ramazzini, who questioned workers about their complaints. He regularly asked his patients about the kind of work they did and suggested that all physicians do the same.4 Ramazzini realized that not all workers' diseases were attributable to the working environment (chemical or physical agents). He observed that a variety of common workers' diseases appeared to be caused by prolonged, violent, and irregular motions and prolonged postures. Such cumulative trauma and repetitivemotion injuries have recently been called the occupational epidemic of the 1990s.5 Ramazzini studied the relationship between certain disorders and postural attitudes, repetition of movements, and weight lifting and anticipated some preventive measures.

Ramazzini's "De morbis artificum Diatriba" and society, culture, and the human condition in the seventeenth century.

The social milieu in which Bernardino Ramazzini achieved his prescient conception of occupational health and barriers to adoption of his approach during his lifetime are described.

The heritage of Bernardino Ramazzini.

Although the seminal work in what was to become the specialty of occupational medicine appeared in 1700 as written by the Italian physician, Bernardino Ramazzini and titled De Morbis Artificum Diatriba, it was through the English translation by Wilmer Cave Wright in 1940 and and the subsequent scholarship of Dr Pericle Di Pietro of Modena, Italy, that this monograph became widely known. Ramazzini has been cited by innumerable medical authors and his volume has undergone many translations from the mid-18th century to the present day. References to this early observations of persons and work and their subsequent disease patterns repeatedly infuse today's description of work-related illness. That his pioneering efforts continue to receive adulation is seen in the organizations bearing his name, many eponymous awards, the striking Ramazzini Hall in Japan, and the continuing appearance of new reprintings of Diseases of Workers world-wide. The name Ramazzini marks the beginning of society's concern with the well-being and physical and emotional health of its workers from the shops of the crafts to the offices of the executives.

Headache as an occupational illness in the treatise "De morbis artificum diatriba" of Bernardino Ramazzini.

The treatise "De morbis artificum diatriba" (Modena, 1700) is considered to be the first text to specifically deal with occupational illnesses. It was also the last for over 150 years. Written by Bernardino Ramazzini (Carpi, 1633-Padua, 1714), a professor at the University of Padua from 1700 to 1714, the book highlights the importance given at the time to headache as an occupational symptom. Among the 69 professions described, accounting for the majority of the occupations of the period, 12 were found to lead to headache as an important symptom caused by work. Ramazzini appears to have paid more attention to this than we do today. Ramazzini's work opens up a wide view on social conditions in the 18th century, as his sensitivity for occupational hazards was exceptional. His remarks on headache are typical of his way of collecting first-hand experience of working conditions, and they underline the importance of occupational hazards in the assessment of headache, today just as in 1710.

Pathologic and Physiologic Studies of Welders' Siderosis

Article1 February 1963Pathologic and Physiologic Studies of Welders' SiderosisWILLIAM KEITH C. MORGAN, M.D., M.R.C.P.E., H. DAVID KERR, M.D.WILLIAM KEITH C. MORGAN, M.D., M.R.C.P.E.Search for more papers by this author, H. DAVID KERR, M.D.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-58-2-293 SectionsAboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail ExcerptMedicine, like jurisprudence, should make a contribution to the well being of workers and see to it that, so far as possible, they should exercise their calling without harm.—Bernardino Ramazzini,De Morbis Artificum Diatriba, 1700Iron is melted and boiled during the welding process by the heat of the electric arc or oxyacetylene torch and is emitted as blue-grey fumes which are immediately oxidized to ferric oxide. Prolonged inhalation of these fumes, particularly if ventilation is inadequate, frequently produces radiologic changes in the lungs (1). Since its original description, welders' siderosis has been generally assumed to be benign and...

働く人々の病気 (8)

働く人々の病気 (8)

Occupational medicine as a vocation.

Those of us who are engaged in the practice of medicine within industry have at some time been forced to ask ourselves, Why do men work ? , and no single simple answer emerges. Most of us work because work is an economic necessity. In the sweat of thy brow shalt thou eat bread (Genesis iii : 7). Work is a condition of man's existence but almost inevitably most of us would avoid it if we could. That we do not make more strenuous efforts to do so is probably because although labour is not sweet its fruits often are. The satisfaction of doing a job well, the sense of achievement, or the genuine commendation of a supervisor can com pensate for hours of drudgery. But these rewards are rare and what makes work more bearable for most men and women day in and day out for years on end, are its by-products?the companionship of the group, the possibility of earning enough to buy a television set or some adjunct to a hobby or a better education for a boy at home. Some get through the day's work not because they enjoy it but because inside the working group they hold a recognized and unique place into which they or almost they alone can fit. One character inevitably becomes a shop steward, another the wag who sends the new apprentice for sky-hooks or a soft-faced hammer , another the man who is the confidant of all in trouble. Some work because work is a habit, some because it gives them oppor tunities for day-dreaming, and yet others because ambition is the spur. The philosophy and creed of Calvinism which regards work as a moral and religious duty has a diminishing number of devotees in western Europe though they may still be found in Scotland and the Low Countries. In Russia and elsewhere the dynamism of the Communist faith exerts on party members much the same kind of influence. All or any of these considerations apply to every form of work except perhaps that of the creative artist whose motivation is an inner com pulsion which often he does not understand. For him there is no divorce between work and leisure. Creative activity is his life and the power of it is irresistible. The practice of medicine impinges on every facet of human life and since the dawn of medicine its practitioners have interested themselves in the relationship between occupation and health. Hippo crates (born 460 b.c.) well knew and described the toxic properties of lead. Galen (born 131 b.c.) referred to the diseases peculiar to miners, tanners, and fullers. Pliny the Elder (a.d. 23-79) described the masks worn by those employed in dusty trades. Paracelsus (1493-1541) wrote a monograph on Miners' Sickness and Other Miners' Diseases and in more recent times?the eighteenth century? Bernadino Ramazzini wrote his classic De Morbis Artificum Diatriba. Percival Pott described the scrotal cancer of chimney-sweeps, Willan the skin lesions of bakers, while later Thomas Percival of Manchester and Charles Turner Thackrah of Leeds were the prophets of Sir Thomas Legge who made industrial medicine his life work. The present increased awareness of the relation ship between occupation and health is mainly due to the rapid industrialization of modern society and to the ever-growing multiplication of specialities in all the arts and sciences, because of our restless haste to accumulate, and sometimes to use know ledge. The subject is not new and has called our fathers and brethren throughout all generations. But what may be new is the increasing number of men and women who are specializing in the applica tion of medicine to industry. The organization of industrial medicine is the inevitable reply to a clamant social need?just as public health was organized in the nineteenth century to combat the evils resulting from urbanizing a rural society. The present development of industrial medicine behoves us to examine afresh our vocation, Why do we do this work ? Inevitably and fortunately in an expanding enter prise there are always a few men who are obsessed and inspired by its ideals and possibilities. That our own branch of the profession in this country is producing such men cannot be doubted. We need not fear for our future leadership in the years which lie immediately ahead. But what impels the growing 163

DIAGNOSIS OF OCCUPATIONAL DISEASE

Article1 May 1947DIAGNOSIS OF OCCUPATIONAL DISEASEIRVING GRAY, M.D., F.A.C.P.IRVING GRAY, M.D., F.A.C.P.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-26-5-678 SectionsAboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail ExcerptThe modern period of interest in occupational diseases had its inception following the epoch-making publication of Ramazzini in 1700.1In this comprehensive treatise were gathered the references of his predecessors on the subject of occupational disease. Ramazzini classified the diseases of nearly 100 different occupations in which hazards to health existed. The first essay on occupational diseases in the United States was written by McCready in 18352and was recently published again.3Garrison4reviewed the literature on occupational diseases and spoke of "life as an occupational disease." In recent years there has been an increasing interest on the part of...Bibliography1. RAMAZZINI B: De morbis artificum diatriba, Modina, 1700. Google Scholar2. MCCREADY BW: On the influence of trades, professions, and occupations in the U. S., in the production of disease. Reprinted from Transactions of the Medical Society of the State of N. Y., Vol. III, Albany, 1837, p. 91-150. Google Scholar3. MILLER G: Introductory Essay to: On the influence of trades, professions, and occupations in the U. S., in the production of disease, 1943, Johns Hopkins Press, Baltimore. Google Scholar4. GARRISON FH: Life as an occupational disease, Bull. N. Y. Acad. Med., 1932, x, 679-694. Google Scholar5. SAYER HD: Occupational diseases; interpretation of compensation laws in the various States, Proceedings of Third Postgraduate Course in Industrial Medicine, L. I. College of Medicine, 1944. Google Scholar6. : Occupation Hazards and Diagnostic Signs, Bulletin No. 41, 1941. Google Scholar7. SCHWARTZTULIPAN LL: Occupational diseases of the skin, 1939, Lea & Febiger, Philadelphia. Google Scholar8. SULZBERGERFINNERUD MBCW: Industrial dermatitis; definition and criteria for diagnosis, Jr. Am. Med. Assoc., 1938, cxi, 1528-1532. CrossrefGoogle Scholar9. PECK SM: Reporting industrial dermatitis, Compensation Med., 1946, i, 3. Google Scholar10. GRAY I: Criteria for determining presence of an occupational disease. Third Post-graduate Course in Industrial Medicine, L. I. College of Medicine, Oct. 19, 1944. Google Scholar11. GRAYGREENFIELD II: Acute lead poisoning, Indust. Med., 1938, vii, 262-264. Google Scholar12. GREENBURGMOSKOWITZ LS: Safe use of solvents for synthetic rubbers, Indust. Med., 1945, xiv, 357-366. Google Scholar13. GRAYGREENFIELDLEDERER IIM: Benzene poisoning, Jr. Am. Med. Assoc., 1940, cxiv, 1325-1330. Google Scholar14. LEHMANNFLURY KBF: Toxicology and hygiene of industrial solvents, 1943, The Williams & Wilkins Co., Baltimore. Google Scholar15. GARDNER LU: The pathology and roentgenographic manifestations of pneumoconiosis, Jr. Am. Med. Assoc., 1940, cxiv, 535-545. Google Scholar16. PENDERGRASSLEOPOLD EPSS: Benign pneumoconiosis, Jr. Am. Med. Assoc., 1945, cxxvii, 701-705. CrossrefGoogle Scholar17. BERNSTEINSUSSMAN SSML: Thoracic manifestations of sarcoidosis, Radiology, 1945, xliv, 37. CrossrefGoogle Scholar18. RYDERREINEKE HWHG: Pulmonary roentgenographic changes due to mitral stenosis simulating those due to silicosis, Am. Heart Jr., 1945, xxix, 327-328. CrossrefGoogle Scholar19. : Cost of Compensation, 2 years—1938 and 1939; Spec. Bulletin No. 208, 1941. Google Scholar20. COCAWALZERTHOMMEN AFMAA: Asthma and hay fever in theory and practice, 1931, Charles C. Thomas, Springfield. Google Scholar21. GRAYALBERT IM: Prevention of asthma in industry, Indust. Med., 1943, xii, 801-804. Google Scholar22. GRAY I: Gastrointestinal disease in relation to occupational hazards; gastroenterology, Jan. 1945. Google Scholar This content is PDF only. To continue reading please click on the PDF icon. Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: Brooklyn, New York*Presented at the 27th Annual Session of the American College of Physicians, Philadelphia, May 16, 1946. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Metrics 1 May 1947Volume 26, Issue 5Page: 678-686 ePublished: 1 December 2008 Issue Published: 1 May 1947 PDF downloadLoading ...

<italic>De morbis artificum diatriba: Diseases of Workers</italic>. By Bernardino Ramazzini. The Latin Text of 1713, revised with Translation and Notes by Wilmer Cave Wright, Emeritus Professor of Greek in Bryn Mawr College. [The History of Medicine Series.] (Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 1940. Pp. xlvii, 549. $5.00.)

Journal Article De morbis artificum diatriba: Diseases of Workers. By Bernardino Ramazzini. The Latin Text of 1713, revised with Translation and Notes by Wilmer Cave Wright, Emeritus Professor of Greek in Bryn Mawr College. [The History of Medicine Series.] (Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 1940. Pp. xlvii, 549. $5.00.) Get access De morbis artificum diatriba: Diseases of Workers. By Ramazzini Bernardino. The Latin Text of 1713, revised with Translation and Notes by Wright Wilmer Cave, Emeritus Professor of Greek in Bryn Mawr College. [The History of Medicine Series.] (Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 1940. Pp. xlvii, 549. $5.00.) Victor Robinson Victor Robinson New York City Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar The American Historical Review, Volume 47, Issue 1, October 1941, Pages 114–115, https://doi.org/10.1086/ahr/47.1.114 Published: 01 October 1941

Mine timber economies

The toxicology of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and sour gas on the eye has a long history beginning at least with Ramazzini's observations [Ramazzini B. Diseases of Workers—De Morbis Artificum Diatriba—1713. Wright WC (trans). New York, C. Hafner Publishing Co Inc.; 1964. 98–99 pp.]. In contrast, a recent review by Alberta Health and Wellness (AHW Report) concluded that there is little evidence of eye irritation following short-term exposures to H2S at concentrations up to 100 ppm and that the H2S literature on the eye is a series of unsubstantiated claims reproduced in review articles dating back to the 1930s [Alberta Health and Wellness (AHW report). Health effects associated with short-term exposure to low levels of hydrogen sulfide: a technical review, Alberta Health and Wellness, October 2002, 81pp.]. In this paper, we evaluated this claim through a historical review of the toxicology of the eye. Ramazzini noted the effects of sewer gas on the eye [Ramazzini B. Diseases of Workers—De Morbis Artificum Diatriba—1713. Wright WC (trans). New York, C. Hafner Publishing Co Inc. 1964. 98–99 pp.]. Lehmann experimentally showed eye effects in men at 70–90 ppm H2S and also in animals [Lehmann K. Experimentalle Studien uber den Einfluss technisch und hygienisch wichtiger Gase und Dampfe auf den Organismus. Arch Hyg 1892;14:135–189]. In 1923, Sayers, Mitchell and Yant reported eye effects in animals and men at 50 ppm H2S. Barthelemy showed eye effects in animals and men at 20 ppm H2S [Barthelemy HL. Ten years' experience with industrial hygiene in connection with the manufacture of viscose rayon. J Ind Hyg Toxicol 1939;21:141–51]. Masure experimentally showed that H2S is the causative agent of eye impacts in animals and men [Masure R. La Keratoconjunctivite des filatures de viscose; etude clinique and experiementale. Rev Belge Pathol 1950;20:297–341]. Michal upon microscopic examination of the rat's cornea, found nuclear pyknosis, edema and separation of cells in the eye following exposures for 3 h at 36 ppm H2S [Michal FV. Eye lesions caused by hydrogen sulfide. Cesk Ophthalmol 1950;6;5–8]. In 1975, in Alberta, irreversible eye damage and photophobia were experimentally produced in calves exposed to 20 ppm H2S for 1 week [Nordstrom GA. A study of calf response of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide gases. Thesis, University of Alberta, Department of Agricultural Engineering, Edmonton Alberta; 1975, 218 pp.]. Alberta Environmental Centre documented clinical irritation of the eye at 40 ppm H2S in 6 hours in rats [Alberta Environmental Centre. Morphological observations in rats exposed for six hours to an atmosphere of 0, 56, or 420 mg/m3 hydrogen sulfide. AECV86-A1. Alberta Environmental Centre, Vegreville, Alberta; 1986b. 28 pp.]. In two sour gas blow-outs in Alberta, in the early 1980s, eye injury was documented in humans and animals at 0.5 ppm H2S. Community studies in the United States, Europe and New Zealand suggest that acute exposure to 25 ppb H2S is the lowest concentration to irritate the eyes; with chronic exposure, serious eye effects are suggested. In contrast to the conclusion, all of the studies, except one, cited in the AHW Report indicate toxic effects on the eye below 100 ppm H2S [Alberta Health and Wellness (AHW report). Health effects associated with short-term exposure to low levels of hydrogen sulfide (H2S): a technical review, Alberta Health and Wellness, October 2002, 81pp.]. In addition, the AHW Report (2002) mis-presented two studies as ‘clinical studies’, claiming they reported no evidence of eye effects in humans from 2 and 30 ppm H2S for 30–40 minutes [Alberta Health and Wellness (AHW report). Health effects associated with short-term exposure to low levels of hydrogen sulfide (H2S): a technical review, Alberta Health and Wellness, October 2002, 81pp.].