The first description of arthroscopic appearance of joints other than the knee, and a classic on the fundamental principles of the procedure. Follow-up paper by Burman, H. Finkelstein, & L. Mayer: Arthroscopy of the knee joint. J. Bone Jt. Surg., 1934, 16, 255-68.

Phelps established the modern classification and approach to these injuries.

Epiphysiodesis to inhibit bone growth of a longer leg.

Definitive study of the rotator cuff, written in Codman’s idiosyncratic and iconoclastic style. Reprint, Malabar, Fl., Krieger, 1965.

Pioneering study of the biomechanics of the hip joint.

“Albright’s syndrome”. With A. M. Butler, A. O. Hampton, and P. Smith.

Introduction of vitallium. With W. Stuck and A. Beach.

Vitallium cup arthroplasty.

Kite’s method, involving “a series of plaster casts and wedgings, without the use of anesthetics, forcible manipulations, or operative procedures”, became standard practice.

First edition of the most influential American textbook of orthopedics in the twentieth century.

Correction to this article in Am. J. Surg., 1939, 44, 534.

Morch established the fact that chondrodystrophy may be inherited.

These studies form the basis of the modern use of bone preserved by refrigeration.

Bunnell originated hand surgery as a specialty.

Includes a translation of Ekman’s thesis (No. 4304.1). Also gives a case reported in 1678.

“Blount staple”. Unlike previous processes, epiphyseal stapling permitted subsequent correction.

Judet acrylic prosthesis.

The first atlas of arthroscopy, a major step in gaining wide acceptance of this operating technique. The color illustrations were prepared by an artist as available arthroscopes did not permit color photography. Watanabe was a pupil of Kenji Takagi (1888-1963) who in 1920 designed the first specialized arthroscope. Takagi was the first to use the arthroscope for operations on the inside of knee. However, he did not publish on the subject until 1932. See Clin. Ortho., 1982, 167, 6-8. Watanabe refined and developed the arthroscope. This atlas was co-authored with S. Takeda and H. Ikeuchi. Revised and enlarged second edition with color photographs through the arthroscope, Tokyo, Igaku Shoin, [1969].

First prosthetic device for replacement of destroyed finger-joints.

Total hip replacement; Charnley arthroplasty.

The “Harrington rod” system for scoliosis and spine fracture surgery.

First successful reattachment of a completely amputated human limb.

“Swanson prosthesis” – flexible silicone rubber finger-joint prosthesis.

Total knee replacement (replacing diseased articular surfaces of both femur and tibia), holding the metal and plastic components in place with acrylic cement.

This elegantly printed and illustrated small folio included 210 text woodcuts, most probably after drawings by the school of Francesco Salviati (Francesco de'Rossi). It was issued from the press operated by Pierre Gautier in the Paris castle of Benevenuto Cellini. Guidi's Chirurgia was derived from the Nicetas Codex, a tenth-century illustrated Byzantine manuscript of surgical works on the treatment of fractures and luxations by Hippocrates, Galen and Oribasius. In 1542, Guidi presented an illustrated copy of this manuscript, along with the manuscript of his own illustrated Latin translation, to François I of France, whom he served as royal physician from 1542 until the king's death in 1547. These manuscripts are preserved in the Bibliothèque nationale de France. For further information see the entry at HistoryofInformation.com at this link.

White’s method of reducing shoulder dislocations by means of suspending the patient from the affected arm. This method either reduced the dislocation entirely, or moved the head of the humerus into a position where it could be reduced by traditional methods such as applying the surgeon’s heel to the axilla.

The methods outlined by Pott in his classic work on fractures and dislocations were eventually adopted all over the world. He described (pp. 57-64) “Pott’s fracture” in this book, and he stressed the necessity for the immediate setting of a fracture and the need for relaxation of the muscles in order that the setting should be carried out successfully. Reprinted in Med. Classics, 1936, 1, 332-37.

The first paper on orthopedic surgery published in the United States. Physick introduced the use of the seton in the treatment of ununited fractures.

Colles’s description of fracture of the carpal end of the radius led that type of fracture to be named “Colles’s fracture”. He was Professor of Surgery at Dublin for more than 30 years. Reprinted in Med. Classics, 1940, 4, 1038-42.

“Dupuytren’s fracture”, of the ankle, described in a learned 212-page review of ankle fractures, and of the normal anatomy and function of the ankle joint. “Of especial interest is the description of experimental fractures produced in cadavers to elucidate the mechanism of injury” (Peltier).

On bending fractures in children.

Through this and numerous subsequent editions this was the principal reference work on the subject in England and America for 30 years. “Many later clinical modifications were developed from Cooper’s methods” (Bick).

First clear pathological description of congenital dislocation of the hip-joint. Dupuytren distinguished this syndrome caused by failure of fetal development of the acetabulum from deformities due to tuberculosis and pyarthrotic disease of the hip joint.

Successful wiring of ununited fracture of humerus.

The remarkable atlas accompanying this work illustrates in remarkable detail all of the various types of dressings, splints and apparatus used in the treatment of fractures at the time.

“Barton’s fracture” of the radius.

This was Malgaigne’s greatest work. His description of bilateral vertical fracture of the pelvis (“Malgaigne’s fracture”) is in vol. 1, pp. 650-56. English translation of the first volume on fractures, Philadelphia, 1859. The second volume on luxations has not been translated.

The first important work on fractures by an Irish author. It includes the description of “Smith’s fracture”. In his chapter “On fractures of the bones of the forearm in the vicinity of the wrist joint” Smith corrected Colles’s original description (No. 4410) by placing the site of the fracture more distally. “It was Smith who firmly attached Colles’s eponym to the fracture that Colles described” (Peltier).

Reduction of dislocation without manipulation. Reid demonstrated the futility of attempting to reduce a dorsal dislocation of the hip by forcible longitudinal traction with pulleys.

Experimenting on animals and cadavers, Brainard developed a special bone drill or “perforator” introduced subcutaneously to perforate the bone ends, simulating a recent fracture, and thus stimulating callus formation.

Buck’s extension apparatus, an improved method of treating fractures of the femur. Reprinted in Med. Classics, 1939, 3, 764-82.

The first comprehensive treatise in English on the treatment of fractures and dislocations. See No. 1742.

“Perrin–Ferraton disease” of the hip, later more fully dealt with by L. Ferraton, Rev. Orthop. (Paris), 1905, 2 sér., 6, 45-51.

Smith devised an anterior or suspensatory splint for use in the treatment of fractures of the femur. The apparatus was heavily used during the U.S. Civil War and was especially valuable in treating compound fractures.

Gurlt, the celebrated historian of surgery (see No. 5800), wrote an exhaustive and detailed review of the literature on fractures. As a source of obscure and arcane information it is unsurpassed. Digital facsimile from Google Books at this link.

Lister’s work on the antiseptic principle in surgery. He believed that bacteria could enter wounds and cause suppuration and putrefaction and that it was necessary to kill the bacteria already in wounds and to apply dressings impregnated with some bactericidal substance. He finally hit on carbolic acid for this purpose. When this work was done it had not yet been proved that bacteria were the cause of disease. The above work is reprinted in Med. Classics, 1937, 2, 28-71.

Bigelow was the first to describe in detail the mechanism of the iliofemoral (Bigelow’s) ligament, and to show its importance in the reduction of dislocation by the flexion method.

Kocher was Professor of Surgery at Berne, and among the greatest surgeons of his day. He is remembered, among other things, for his method of reduction of subluxation of the shoulder-joint.

First book devoted to the treatment of fractures by internal fixation.

“Bennett’s fracture” of the first metacarpal. He was Professor of Surgery at Trinity College, Dublin.

The first deliberate and planned operation for the relief of internal derangement of the knee-joint caused by a displaced cartilage, i.e. repair of the meniscus. Annandale succeeded Lister as Professor of Clinical Surgery at Edinburgh in 1877.

Classic description of “Sprengel’s deformity”, a congenital upward displacement of the scapula.

“Trendelenburg’s sign” of congenital dislocation of the hip-joint.

Lane’s method of “osteo-synthesis” in the treatment of fractures – the perfect re-apposition of the affected parts by means of operative intervention.

Definitive and exhaustive study of growth plate fractures in children. Poland also published the series of x rays included in the above work as a separate atlas: Skiagraphic atlas showing the development of the bones of the wrist and hand, London, Smith, Elder, 1898.

Parkhill introduced external fixation for the treatment of fractures.

Lane’s plates and screws for union of fractures.

Steinmann nail or pin, for insertion through a distal fragment and controlled by direct skeletal traction. English translation in Bick, Classics of orthopaedics.

Lambotte developed an external fracture fixation device using pins on either side of the fracture, connected by a solid rod.

Blundell Bankart’s operation.

Böhler introduced several new methods and devised new apparatus for the treatment of fractures. His clinic in Vienna became world-famous. 12-13th ed., 1951.

Orr developed a treatment for open fractures “consisting of thorough debridement, reduction of the fracture, and usually, maintenance of the reduction by the technique of pins transfixing the fragments and incorporated into the plaster” (Peltier).

Smith-Petersen nail, a three-flanged nail which prevented rotation of the femoral head. With E.F. Cave and G. W. Van Gorder.

Demonstration of the causal role of intervertebral disc herniation in sciatica.

Hoffmann, a Swiss general surgeon with a doctorate in theology and unusual skill in carpentry, developed the versatile Hoffmann system of external fixation devices.

During the Spanish Civil War (1935-38) Trueta adopted as standard treatment for gunshot wounds and compound fractures the closed plaster method originated by the American surgeon H. Winnett Orr. Trueta called this the biological treatment of wounds. The treatment consisted of débridement and wound excision followed by packing the wound open and immobilizing the limb in a plaster dressing. Also in 1938 the same publisher issued Trueta's book in Trueta's native Catalan as El tractament de les factures de guerra. Whether the Catalan or Spanish edition preceded the other, or whether they might have been issued simultaneously, is unknown. English translation: Treatment of war wounds and fractures: with special reference to the closed method as used in the war in Spain, London, 1939.

“Rush pins”, made of specially hardened type 316 stainless steel, for fractures of the long bones.

“A classic exposition of the non-operative approach” (Peltier).

First electrically-induced osteogenesis. Yasuda demonstrated that small amounts of electric current applied to bone stimulated osteogenesis at the cathode. He was also the first to describe stress generated potentials in bone. Abridged English translation in Clin. orthop., 1977, 124, 5-8.

Holdsworth classification of spinal injuries.

Standard classification of growth plate fractures in children.

Describes how Yonge used turpentine to arrest hemorrhage, and presents the first account of a flap amputation. It also shows that Yonge was familiar with tourniquets. Digital facsimile from Google Books at this link.

First recorded excision of the head of the humerus.

This was originally a letter to Pott. Park became famous for his operation of excision and arthrodesis as a treatment for destructive joint disease. The title page is misprinted “MDCCXXXIII”; the letter is dated 1783. The second edition of this work, Glasgow, 1806, contains the English translation of No. 4440.

This work edited by Fourcroy contains in vol. 4 (pp. 85-88) the first description of Chopart’s method of partial amputation of the foot. This is in the form of a note by Lafiteau: “Observation sur une amputation partielle du pied”. Lafiteau also named “Chopart’s joint”, the astragaloscaphoid and calcaneo-cuboid articulation. François Chopart was born in 1743 and died in 1795.

Excision and arthrodesis in joint disease. Moreau was the first to excise the elbow. English translation, Glasgow, 1806. See No. 4438.

Larrey was the greatest military surgeon in history. Of him Napoleon said: “C’est l’homme le plus vertueux que j’ai connu”. He was present at all Napoleon’s great battles and one of the few who stood by him on his abdication, and was waiting for him on his return in 1815. Larrey was one of the first to amputate at the hip-joint; he described the operation in vol. 2, pp. 180-95, reporting at least two successful cases. He was the first to describe the therapeutic effect of maggots on wounds, gave the first description of “trench foot”, invented the “ambulante volonte”, used advanced first-aid posts on the battlefield, and devised several new operations. He was familiar with the stomach tube, with débridement, and with the infectious nature of granular conjunctivitis (trachoma). He was a kindly man, who devoted much of his life to the well-being of the soldiers, among whom not even Napoleon commanded more love and respect. Larrey states on page 1 of vol. 5, published 24 years after vol. 4, that he intended it to complete his campaign memoirs. Vol. 5 includes his account of the Battle of Waterloo and Napoleon’s exile.

English translation with notes by Richard Willmott Hall of vols. 1-3 in 2 vols. as Memoirs of military surgery and campaigns of the French armies, on the Rhine, in Corsica, Catalonia, Egypt and Syria; at Boulogne, Ulm and Austerlitz; in Saxony, Prussia, Poland, Spain, and Austria. Baltimore, 1814. English translation of vol. 4 by John C. Mercer, as Surgical memoirs of the campaigns of Russia, Germany, and France. Philadelphia, 1832.

“Lisfranc’s amputation” of the foot.

Dupuytren was the first successfully to excise the lower jaw, in 1812, as recorded in his Leçons orales, 1829, 2, 421-53. The above paper deals with a later operation of the same type.

Successful amputation at the hip-joint, after the battle of Waterloo, 7 July, 1815.

First excision of the superior maxilla, 11 Nov, 1820.

Mott resected the entire half of the bone, necessitating a disarticulation at the temporo-mandibular joint.

Deaderick resected a portion of the jaw in 1810. He wrote this paper to obtain priority over Mott (No. 4447).

Rogers removed nearly all of the upper jaw. Operation performed in 1810.

Smith amputated the knee-joint in 1824, being the first in America to do so.

Barton performed a femoral osteotomy between the greater and lesser trochanters to secure motion in an ankylosed hip. This has been called the first successful arthroplasty. Reprinted in Clin. Orthop., 1984, 182, 4-13.

This is “the first reported amputation at the hip joint found in the American medical literature” (Rutkow). See No. 4462.

Valentine Mott was an outstanding figure in American surgery during the first half of the 19th century. A pupil of Astley Cooper, he particularly distinguished himself in vascular surgery and in operations involving the bones and joints.See No. 4463.

Syme’s operation of excision of the lower jaw for osteosarcoma.

Records the first interscapulo-thoracic amputation, performed by Ralph Cuming (d. 1808), a naval surgeon, in 1808.

Among the French surgeons of the 19th century, Roux was second in importance only to Dupuytren. He performed staphylorrhaphy in 1819 and sutured the ruptured female peritoneum in 1832; he is also remembered on account of his method of resection of bone.

Syme, teacher and father-in-law of Lister, was one of the greatest of the Scottish surgeons. He is remembered for his method of amputation at the ankle (see No. 4459), for his speedy adoption of anesthesia and antisepsis, and for the above book, which showed that excision of joints is usually preferable to amputation – a principle soon generally adopted.

White was the first to perform this operation, April 1821.

“Syme’s amputation” at the ankle joint, an operation first successfully performed by him on 8 Sept, 1842.

“Mackenzie’s operation”, a modification of Syme’s amputation (No. 4459). Mackenzie volunteered for service in the Crimean War and died of Asiatic cholera near Sebastopol.

First excision of the hip-joint in America. Unfortunately the one-page article provides no details.

The first successful amputation of the hip-joint was performed by Brashear in 1806 at Bardstown, Kentucky; he first amputated the thigh through its middle third, and tied off the bleeding vessels; then he made a long incision on the outside of the limb, exposing the remainder of the bone, which was disarticulated at its socket. This article is part of a study on surgery in Kentucky authored by Samuel D. Gross, who wrote that Brashear was “alternately or successively, doctor, merchant, legislator, lawyer, and naturalist. For some years he served his adopted State in the Senate of the United States”. See No. 4451.1.

J. H. Johnson (New Orleans med. surg. J., 1850, 6, 474-76) stated that McCreary performed the first resection of the clavicle in the United States on 4 May, 1811. Valentine Mott reported the operation in 1828. See No. 4452.

Pirogov’s method of complete osteoplastic amputation of the foot. German translation, Leipzig, 1854.

Gritti’s amputation of the thigh was later improved by Stokes (see No. 4470).

Teale’s method of amputation.

Carden devised a single flap operation, cutting through the femur just above the knee-joint. He published a book on the subject in 1864.

Gritti–Stokes amputation (see also No. 4466).

“Berger’s operation”, interscapulothoracic amputation. See also his monograph, Paris, Masson, 1887.

Interilio-abdominal amputation first described.

First successful hind-quarter amputation.

Vanghetti was the first to suggest the use of the musculature remaining above the amputation stump to form a motor unit for artificial limbs – “kinematization of stumps”.

Ceci was the first to operate on the lines suggested by Vanghetti.

Putti developed and improved kineplastic surgery.

One-stage operation.

A history, based on extensive study of the classical literature, of the attitudes and practices of the Greeks and Romans concerning diet, hygiene, bathing, and exercise. This is one of the earliest books to discuss the therapeutic value of gymnastics and sports generally for the cure of disease and disability, and an important study of gymnastics in the ancient world. 

The second edition, De arte gymnastica libri sex, Venice, Juntas, 1573, was the first illustrated book on gymnastics. It contains 20 unsigned woodcuts usually attributed to Christoph Lederer of Nuremberg, who assumed the name of Coriolanus after moving to Italy. These illustrations drawn by Pirro Ligorio "can now be shown to be the result of imaginative reconstruction, or straightforward forgery...unknown to his [Mercuriale's] readers, who assumed that images confirmed the truth of what Mercuriale had deduced from the evidence of texts.... The argument and illustrations in De arte gymnastica demonstrated the prime place of gymnastics in Greece and Rome, and later, convinced Winckelmann of the importance of nudity in Greek civilization and art" (Vivian Nutton, "Mercurale, Girolamo", Grafton et al (eds.), The classical tradition [2010] pp. 582-83.) Digital facsimile of the 1573 edition from the Internet Archive at this link.

Ramazzini's study of the diseases of workers, De morbis artificium diatriba, was the first comprehensive and systematic treatise on occupational medicine; it was also the foundation work in ergonomics. It deals with pneumoconiosis and other diseases of miners, with lead poisoning in potters, with silicosis in stonemasons, diseases among metal workers, and even a chapter devoted to the “diseases of learned men", a chapter on diseases of printers, and of athletes. Ramazzini also discussed the occupational diseases of women, recommending that midwives practice cleanliness and take precautions against syphilitic infections. Ramazzini recognized that a number of workers’ diseases were caused by the taxing postures and repetitive motions required by professions such as shoemaking, tailoring and writing; he is thus considered a founder of ergonomics. He suggested ways to prevent these ailments.

Ramazzini's book was translated into English as A Treatise on the Diseases of Tradesmen (London, 1705). In 1713 Ramazzini expanded his text. This revised edition was reprinted with a parallel English translation by Wilmer Cave Wright and published as De Morbis Artificum Bernardini Ramazzini Diseases of Workers (1940). Through various Latin editions and translations into Italian, German, French and Dutch Ramazzini's book was also influential in the history of economics. The first French translation by the noted chemist, Fourcroy, Paris, 1777 contained significant additions. Digital facsimile of the 1703 second edition from the Internet Archive at this link.

The first English book on the power of exercise in treating disease. Fuller also recommended exercise for aid in the recovery from psychological and emotional disorders. In this he preceded Cheyne (No. 4840).

The first book on therapeutic exercise as the term is understood today. English translation with facsimiles in reduced format of 18th century translations into German, Italian and Swedish, New Haven, [1964].

The foundation of modern gymnastics and therapeutic massage. Ling established the Swedish school of physiotherapy with his institute for training gymnastics teachers in Stockholm in 1813. He developed the ancient Greek art of calisthenics into a science based on sound anatomical and physiological principles. “After Ling, scientific body building by rational calisthenics became a recognized procedure not only for the weak child or adult, but, of even greater consequence, as an integral part of the plans for preventative medicine which were taking form in the schools and gymnasia of all civilized nations” (Bick).

Pioneering study of the physiological effects of training.

The first comprehensive work on sports medicine. Digital facsimile from the Internet Archive at this link.

The first English treatise on sports medicine.

The first American book on sports medicine, co-authored by the legendary football coach, Knute Rockne.

Apparently the first book on the prevention and treatment of injuries in a single sport, written after fifty players were killed in the 1931 American football season. Stevens was an orthopedic surgeon who became head football coach at Yale University. Phelps was professor of orthopedics at Yale.

Classic study of knee ligament injuries.

Pioneer treatise on sports for the handicapped by the physician who first introduced archery competition as a therapeutic measure for paraplegic war veterans in 1948.

The first separate book on exercise by a physician. Facsimile with English translation by Francisco Guerra as Book of bodily exercise, edited by Frederick G. Kilgour (New Haven: E. Licht, 1960).

Gives details of the work of John Hunter, John Hilton, Hugh Owen Thomas, Little, Stromeyer, Marshall Hall, Arbuthnot Lane, Syme, Julius Wolff, etc., in the development of modern orthopaedics. Second edition, 1925. Facsimile reprint of first edition, 1952. Reprinted, Malabar, Fl., Krieger, 1975.

A concise, thematic history of orthopedic surgery from the earliest times. Includes a useful bibliography. Reprinted 1968.

Selections (often abridged) from classic primary sources, arranged thematically, with commentary.

Eighty classic papers and sections from books, reprinted from the series of articles in Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research.

A history of hand surgery.

Aretaeus left many fine descriptions of disease; in fact Garrison ranks him second only to Hippocrates in this respect. In the printed editions of this bibliography, before the present online version, the Adams edition was cited no less than 12 times for individual diseases, plus its first citation in "Collected Works" (No. 22.) This number of citations is, of course, greater than any other specific work by any other author, though the number of citations may be a reflection of idiosyncracies of the compilers rather than a proportionate measure of the significance of Aretaeus in the history of medicine. The citations are as follows:

3162. On angina, or quinsey. In his Extant works, ed. F. Adams, 249-52, 404-07.

3163. On pleurisy. In his Extant works, ed. F. Adams, 255-58, 410-16.

2433. On elephas, or elephantiasis. In his Extant works, ed. by F. Adams, 366-73, 494-98. Classic description of “elephantiasis Aretaei”, nodous leprosy.

5046. On ulcerations about the tonsils. In hiis Extant works, ed. F. Adams, 253-55. Aretaeus’s description of ulcerations about the tonsils, which he called “ulcera Syrica”, clearly referred to diphtheria, of which it was the first unmistakable description. For his treatment of the disease, see pp. 409-10 of the same work.

5089. On dysentery. In his Extant works, ed. F. Adams. 353-57. Prior to Lösch’s discovery of E. histolytica, all forms of dysentery were differentiated only on clinical grounds.

4915. Extant works. Ed. F. Adams. Aretaeus wrote important accounts of melancholy (298-300, 473-78) and madness (301-04).

5146. On tetanus. In his Extant works, ed. F. Adams,  246-49, 400-04. Aretaeus left a full account of tetanus.

4484,  On arthritis and sciatica. In his Extant works, ed. by F. Adams,  362-65, 492-93,

3612. On jaundice, or icterus. In his Extant works, ed F. Adams, 324-28.

4510. On paralysis. In his Extant works, ed. F. Adams.

4808. On epilepsy, in his Extant works, ed F. Adams,  243, 296, 399, 468. Aretaeus was well acquainted with hemi-epilepsy from local injury in the opposite half of the brain; partly from this knowledge he formulated the “decussation in the form of the letter X” of the motor path. He first described epilepsy resulting from a depressed fracture of the skull. In his excellent description he made the first mention of the aura.

3925. On diabetes.In his Extant works, ed. F. Adams. 338-40, 485-86. The first accurate account of diabetes, to which Aretaeus gave its present name; he insisted on the part which thirst plays in the symptomatology. 

According to the Wikipedia article on Headache, Aretaeus also provied the first recorded classification system for headaches: "He made a distinction between three different types of headache: i) cephalalgia, by which he indicates a shortlasting, mild headache; ii) cephalea, referring to a chronic type of headache; and iii) heterocrania, a paroxysmal headache on one side of the head." 

Digital facsimile of Adams's Greek and Latin edition from the Internet Archive at this link.

Abridged English translation by W. S. C. Copeman and M. Winder in Med. Hist., 1969, 13, 288-93, who write: "This small treatise contains a surprising amount of sound advice regarding the prevention and cure of the disease. The author is an early advocate of prophylaxis by the exercise of moderation in food, drink, anger and lechery: he recommends moderate regular exercise as well as avoidance of unnecessary purgation, and 'great sadness or anxiety'. Burgauer, about whom little is known, was evidently an admirer of Rhazes and Avicenna and quotes freely from their works. It is interesting to note, however, that he was evidently also an early follower of Paracelsus as, in addition to his recommendations regarding galenic preparations of herbs, seeds and roots, he attributes therapeutic virtue to metals and precious stones and strongly advocates a compound of metallic gold."

De Baillou is usually credited with introducing the term “rheumatism”. He was court physician in Paris at the time of Henri IV. His book, the first on rheumatism, was translated into English by C. C. Barnard in Brit. J. Rheum., London, 1940, 2, 141-62. (According to Webb Dordick, the antiquarian bookseller Emil Offenbacher pointed out in his catalogue 28, item 94, a use of the word rheumatism as early as 1577:  Petrus Pichotus. De rheumatismo . . . , Bordeaux, 1577.)  A digital facsimile of Pichotus's book is available from Google Books at this link.

First to describe gonococcal arthritis.

Of the many great works of Sydenham, this is considered his masterpiece. He clearly differentiated gout from rheumatism. For an English translation, see his Works, published by the Sydenham Society, 1850, 2, 123-84.

This book excited great attention and ran through eight editions in one year. Cadogan’s advice on moderate exercise and moderation in drinking as a cure for gout caused much criticism. 

Landré-Beauvais gave the first reasonably accurate description of rheumatoid arthritis.

Samuel Johnson called Heberden “the last of our learned physicians”. The above work included all his important papers, which had earned him his great reputation, and which are dealt with elsewhere in this database (see Nos. 2887, 2291, 5438, 5831). Heberden's book was published posthumously by Heberden’s son, and at once acquired a European reputation; “it had the distinction of being the last important medical treatise written in Latin” (Rolleston). An English translation also appeared in 1802. Chap. 78 reports two cases of anaphylactoid (abdominal) purpura. Henoch (No. 3065) and Schönlein (No. 3058) established this condition as a distinct entity. In his chapter De nodis digitorum Heberden described a form of rheumatic gout in which nodules (“Heberden’s nodes”) appeared at the interphalangeal joints of the fingers. Heberden's introduction to the book, written in 1767, was not published until the 4th edition (1816).

The first monograph on acute rheumatism. 

First description of the neurotic spinal arthropathies.

Extension of Bouillaud’s work on the coincidence of heart disease and acute rheumatism. He regarded fever as the effect of endocarditis (see also No. 2749).

The “thread test” in gout was introduced by Garrod. Later he wrote more fully on gout and rheumatism (see No. 4497).

An excellent description of chronic rheumatic arthritis. Adams also published Illustrations of the effects of rheumatic gout, London, 1857.

Garrod was the leading authority of his time on gout, which he separated from other forms of arthritis by his discovery of excess of uric acid in the blood of gouty sufferers. He gave to rheumatoid arthritis its present name.

Charcot and Cornil gave an important description of the renal lesions in gout.

First description of chronic arthritis in childhood.

Meynet was the first to draw special attention to the subcutaneous fibroid nodules in rheumatism.