Origin Robert Willan's systematic classification of skin diseases from 1798; the American Academy of Dermatology (originally the American Academy of Dermatology and Syphilology) was founded 14 to 15 January 1938 in Detroit.
The specialty concerned with the diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the skin, hair and nails. It emerged as a scientific discipline distinct from general medicine in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, as physicians sought to classify skin diseases by their visible morphology rather than unverified theories of internal cause. Several national schools developed roughly in parallel in England, France and Austria. In the United States the specialty organized nationally in 1938.
Facts
Origin PeriodRobert Willan's systematic classification of skin diseases from 1798; the American Academy of Dermatology (originally the American Academy of Dermatology and Syphilology) was founded 14 to 15 January 1938 in Detroit. 2 Classification
Type/Classification FAQs
How did dermatology become a discipline separate from general medicine?
It grew from classifying skin diseases by appearance rather than by theories of internal cause.
Physicians in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries began classifying skin diseases by their visible morphology rather than by unverified theories of internal cause. Robert Willan's systematic classification of skin diseases from 1798 is a landmark of that shift. Several national schools developed roughly in parallel in England, France and Austria, and in the United States the specialty organized nationally in 1938.
Connections
Associated With
Rosacea, Conditions Chronic inflammatory skin condition of the face; dermatology specialty.
Scabies, Conditions Skin infestation by the Sarcoptes scabiei mite; dermatology specialty.
Notable Specialists
Albert Neisser, Healers Dermatologist and venereologist who identified the gonococcus in 1879.
Source Clinton Thomas Dent (Wikipedia)
Surgeon who developed Mohs micrographic surgery for skin cancer, now a dermatologic procedure.
Source Herta Oberheuser (Wikipedia)
Source Iwan Bloch (Wikipedia)
Source Johannes Fabry (Wikipedia)
Source Joseph von Lindwurm (Wikipedia)
Source Julius Scriba (Wikipedia)
Source Paul Gerson Unna (Wikipedia)
Source Theodor Morell (Wikipedia)
Treats
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Medical specialty
WikipediaClassification tableQuote, Classification table
Medical specialties that focus on the diagnosis and non-surgical treatment of disease.
2. The Founding of the Academy
The History of Dermatology Societyhistoryofdermatology.org Founding of the AAD page, main article text on the 1938 organizational meetingQuote, historyofdermatology.org Founding of the AAD page, main article text on the 1938 organizational meeting
Forty years ago a small group of dermatologists gathered at the Statler Hotel in Detroit for the organizational meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology.
Robert Willan and the history of dermatology
Royal College of Physiciansrcp.ac.uk Willan article, second paragraph of main bodyQuote, rcp.ac.uk Willan article, second paragraph of main body
Willan made his major contribution to dermatology through his rigorous classification of skin diseases.
Theodor Morell (Wikipedia)
Notable Specialists: Theodor Morell, Article text [specialist-in]Quote, Notable Specialists: Theodor Morell, Article text [specialist-in]
his practice becoming fashionable for treatment of skin and venereal diseases
Iwan Bloch (Wikipedia)
Notable Specialists: Iwan Bloch, Article text, specialtyQuote, Notable Specialists: Iwan Bloch, Article text, specialty
was a German dermatologist, and psychiatrist
Paul Gerson Unna (Wikipedia)
Notable Specialists: Paul Gerson Unna, Lead [specialist-in]Quote, Notable Specialists: Paul Gerson Unna, Lead [specialist-in]
was a German physician specialized in dermatology
Herta Oberheuser (Wikipedia)
Notable Specialists: Herta Oberheuser, Education and Nazi Party membershipQuote, Notable Specialists: Herta Oberheuser, Education and Nazi Party membership
having specialized in dermatology
Johannes Fabry (Wikipedia)
Notable Specialists: Johannes Fabry, Leben, first paragraphQuote, Notable Specialists: Johannes Fabry, Leben, first paragraph
konzentrierte sich fortan auf die Dermatologie
Clinton Thomas Dent (Wikipedia)
Notable Specialists: Clinton Thomas Dent, Lead paragraph or Medical career sectionQuote, Notable Specialists: Clinton Thomas Dent, Lead paragraph or Medical career section
He also had a special interest in dermatology.
Julius Scriba (Wikipedia)
Notable Specialists: Julius Scriba, Biography, subjects taughtQuote, Notable Specialists: Julius Scriba, Biography, subjects taught
taught surgery, dermatology, ophthalmology and gynecology
Joseph von Lindwurm (Wikipedia)
Notable Specialists: Joseph von Lindwurm, Lead sentenceQuote, Notable Specialists: Joseph von Lindwurm, Lead sentence
was a German medical doctor and dermatologist born in Aschaffenburg.
Dissenting Readings (1 dissenting reading)
Description
While English-language medical history generally credits Robert Willan (London) as the founder of modern dermatology for his 1798 morphologic classification of skin diseases, historians of the Austrian and German traditions instead credit Ferdinand Ritter von Hebra and the New Vienna School for founding the discipline, arguing von Hebra introduced a genuinely pathological rather than purely descriptive approach. French medical history similarly credits Jean-Louis-Marc Alibert of Paris. No single national tradition's claim is universally accepted; each is the origin point within its own historiography.
A dissenting reading, from Cosmoderma (open-access dermatology journal)Ferdinand Ritter von Hebra: Founder of modern dermatology, Cosmoderma
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.