Home
Conditions
News Archive
Symptoms Contact us
About us
Search Resources
|
Information and facts about Eponymous diseases.
A large number of diseases have been named after people. Most often, their namesakes discovered or described the disease, while occasionally the disease is named after the first patient described (Christmas disease) or the place where it was first identified (Bornholm disease).
The proliferation of eponyms in medicine is partly due to the fact that until recently the exact cause of many diseases was a mystery. The best way to refer to a syndrome, then, was to refer to the person who first addressed its existence.
There is controversy over the naming conventions for eponymous diseases. Many sources now agree that an apostrophe should be used if the disease is named after the patient, and no apostrophe if the disease is named after the physician (for example, Down syndrome). However, older conventions are still commonly in use, and usage in practice is effectively random.
Back to main Diseases and Conditions page
Can't find what you are looking for?
Use our site search facility...
|
|
