F.J.V. Broussais (1772-1838) : his life and doctrines / by J.D. Rolleston.

  • Rolleston, J. D. (John Davy), 1873-1946.
Date:
1939
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: F.J.V. Broussais (1772-1838) : his life and doctrines / by J.D. Rolleston. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    in the same way and all recovered. “ Do Broussais the justice of believing ”, Trousseau continues, ‘‘ that if as a theorist he is a brute (animal), as a physician in serious diseases he knows how to look after his patients.’ On the other hand, as Trousseau relates, Husson, one of the most devoted partisans of the physiological doctrine, lost two thirds of his typhoid patients by too strict an application of the antiphlogistic régime. Less harm indeed was done by Broussais himself than by his fanatical pupils who discarded the use of such valuable specifics as cinchona for the treatment of malaria and ipecacuanha for dysentery. In Broussais’ favour it has been urged that his works possess originality. “No one ”, says the anonymous French critic already mentioned, ‘“‘ has better justified the maxim that the style is the man. One must not look for any literary elaboration or refinement. Even in his last works there was something crude and unfinished. Though an accomplished writer, his language showed a lack of delicacy. On the other band, apart from the philosophic reflexions which appear in his work on Ivritation and Insanity and which are quite unintelligible, his writings possess a remarkable lucidity. . . . No one did more to discredit vague and obscure systems and the pedantic and hollow phraseology of the old schools and to regard precision of language as synonymous with that of ideas.” “In conclusion ”’ the critic remarks that “‘ it was not his special theories nor his therapeutic principles which we recommend, but merely the spirit of independence and examination which he introduced into the Paris school, and of which he was the first victim.”’ Poullain, one of his assistants, though at first attracted by the antiphlogistic doctrine, afterwards saw that it had few advantages over former methods, and that it had often fatal results. He admitted, however, that Broussais never starved his patients, as was asserted by some malevolent critics, though this was done by the “ ultra-physiologists ’’, who claimed to be his partisans, but was always ready to satisfy the demands of those who asked for food. Among recent authorities who have a word to say on Broussais’ behalf should be mentioned the late Professor Joseph Grasset of Montpellier, who writes :— “ After Bayle and Laennec one must mention Broussais, who was an extremely energetic worker in the building up of morbid anatomy. His exaggerated expressions, the violence of his polemics, were merely the defects of his qualities, the dangers of his system which were aggravated by his pupils, should not let us forget his real work and the impulse which he gave to pathological research. One may say that in many aspects his History of Chronic Phlegmasias has rendered an immense service to medicine.” J. B. Fonssagrives, another eminent physician of Montpellier, remarks that in spite of his erroneous doctrine of gastritis, Broussais, by substituting the doctrine of local irritation for diatheses, replaced the abstract by the concrete and gave a character of precision to practical medicine which had hitherto been lacking. Lastly it may be said in defence of Broussais, that possessing as he did all the qualities of an apostle he derived no pecuniary advantages from his doctrines, and he died, if not poor, at least with only a very moderate fortune (Maljean). REBERENCES AMUSSAT, |. Z. (1838), Gaz. méd. de Paris, 6, 769: ANDRAL, G. (1829), ‘“‘ Précis d’anatomie pathologique ”’. Id. (1839), Clin. méd., 2, 3. Paris. BDABONNHIX, La(l938)\ Gaz, danope LIL 221. BONNETTE, F. (1938), zbzd., 111, 1344. BovuiILLaup (1838), zbid., 12, 565. BOVER 241370) Dictwencyclecsemmed aa Decham Dre) ms. Va DLOtscaic. mmm at ioe Broussais, C. (1839), Preface*to ~ De l’Irritation et de la Folie. 2nd ed. CHAUFFARD, E. (1877), “ Andral. La médecine francaise de 1820 a 1830 ”’. CHAUPFARD, MDE HA(1839)) Gaz dahon, 12.13, DuBois, F. (1849), Mém. Acad. Nat. de méd., 14, 1. FABER, K. (1923), ““ Nosography in modern internal medicine”. New York.
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