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. 2021 May-Jun;96(3):332-345.
doi: 10.1016/j.abd.2020.09.006. Epub 2021 Mar 16.

History of dermatology: the study of skin diseases over the centuries

Iago Gonçalves Ferreira  1 , Magda Blessmann Weber  2 , Renan Rangel Bonamigo  3
Affiliations

History of dermatology: the study of skin diseases over the centuries

Iago Gonçalves Ferreira et al. An Bras Dermatol. 2021 May-Jun.

Abstract

The study of skin, the science of dermatology, has undergone significant transformations throughout the centuries. From the first descriptions of skin diseases in Egyptian papyri and in Hippocratic writings to the first treatises on dermatology, important individuals and discoveries have marked the specialty. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the specialty consolidated itself as a field of medical study based on the first classifications of dermatoses, diagnostic methods, and drug treatments. In the 20th century, the scientific and technological revolution transformed dermatological practice, incorporating new therapeutic resources, as well as surgical and aesthetic procedures. In the face of such a vigorous process, it is important to provide a historical synthesis for the medical community to recognize and understand the origins that supported one of the most relevant specialties in the current medical scenario.

Keywords: Dermatology; History of medicine; History, 18(th) century; History, ancient; History, medieval; Skin diseases.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Ebers papyrus (1550 BC). Source: The Ebers papyrus – Wikimedia Commons.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Corpus Hippocraticum (3rd century BC). Source: Hippocratic Corpus – Wikimedia Commons.
Figure 3
Figure 3
De Morbis Cutaneis, by Daniel Turner (1714) Source: De Morbis Cutaneis, London, 1714.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Classification of dermatological diseases by Plenck. Source: Doctrina de Morbis Cutaneis, Vienna, 1776.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Paul Gerson Unna at his microscope, late 19th century. Source: Paul Gerson Unna – U.S. National Library of Medicine.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Robert Willan, the father of modern dermatology. Source: Wikimedia Commons – Robert Willan. Photograph by A. C. Cooper.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Illustrations of dermatological diseases by Robert Willan (1808). Source: On Cutaneous Diseases.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Jean-Louis Alibert's Tree of Dermatoses. Source: Collection le Musée de L'hôpital St Louis.
Figure 9
Figure 9
Dermatologists participating in the first International Congress of Dermatology and Syphilology – Paris (1889). Source: Collection le Musée de L'hôpital St Louis.
Figure 10
Figure 10
Surface microscope. Source: História da Dermatoscopia, Dominguez et al.
Figure 11
Figure 11
Frederic Edward Mohs - University of Wisconsin (1936*). *Frederic Mohs performing the chemosurgery procedure (micrographic surgery). Source: Skin Cancer Foundation.
Figure 12
Figure 12
US Army satellite radio system in Somalia – Operation Restoring Hope (1992). Source: Restoring Hope – History Division – United States Marine Corps.
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