2013.3-2S.EPONYMSDK

EPONYMS IN THE DERMATOLOGY LITERATURE LINKED TO DENMARK

Khalid Al Aboud¹, Daifullah Al Aboud²

Corresponding author:  Dr. Khalid Al Aboud    e-mail: amoa65@hotmail.com

Cite this article: Al Aboud K, Al Aboud A. Eponyms in the dermatology literature linked to Denmark. Our Dermatol Online. 2013; 4(Suppl. 2): 420-421.

Denmark, officially the Kingdom of Denmark, as it is known, is a state in the Scandinavian region of Northern Europe. The estimated population is around ,5,580,413. The national language is Danish [1]. Denmark has one of the world’s highest per capita income. For 2013, Denmark is listed 15th on the Human Development Index.Danish engineers are world-leading in providing diabetes care equipment and medication products [1]. The most famous medical eponyms linked to Denmark are The Bartholin glands and Hirschsprung disease. The Bartholin glands are two glands located slightly posterior and to the left and right of the opening of the vagina They were first described in 1677, by the Danish anatomist Caspar Bartholin the Younger (1655–1738) [2]. Some sources mistakenly ascribe their discovery to his grandfather, theologian and anatomist Caspar Bartholin the Elder (1585–1629). Gaspard Bartholin had the good fortune during his stay in Paris to meet Joseph Guichard du Verney, a French anatomist who had discovered the glandula vestibuloris major. Back in Copenhagen he was appointed professor of anatomy. At the age of 21, he described the physiology of the glandula vestibuloris major, later known as Batholin’s gland. Ennobled, laden with honours, he was later appointed personal physician to the king of Denmark until his death in 1738 [2]. Hirschsprung disease is a developmental disorder of the enteric nervous system and is characterized by an absence of ganglion cells in the distal colon resulting in a functional obstruction. The first report of Hirschsprung disease dates back to 1691, however, the disease is named after Harald Hirschsprung (1830- 1916), the Danish physician who first described two infants who died of this disorder in 1888 [3]. In Table I [4-9], we highlighted on selected eponyms in dermatology literature, linked to Denmark.

 

Eponyms in the dermatology literature linked to Denmark	Remarks
Asboe-Hansen sign [4-6]	The Asboe-Hansen sign (also known as „indirect Nikolsky sign” refers to the extension of a blister to adjacent unblistered skin when pressure is put on the top of the bulla. This sign is named for Gustav Asboe-Hansen (1917-1989), (Fig. 1), who was a Professor and Head of the Department of Dermatology and Venereology at the University Hospital in Copenhagen, Denmark. His article was published in 1960. Asboe-Hansen noticed the differences between the blister-spread patterns in pemphigus and those in bullous pemphigoid. Whereas in pemphigus vulgaris, the blister extension had a sharp angle, in bullous pemphigoid, the advanced border was rounded as in a pressure bulla. Nikolsky’s sign is named for, Russian dermatologist Pyotr Vasiliyevich Nikolskiy (1858-1940). Figure 1. Gustav Asboe-Hansen (1917–1989)
Ehlers–Danlos syndrome (EDS) [7]	Also known as Cutis hyperelastica, is a group of inherited connective tissue disorders, caused by a defect in the synthesis of collagen. Named after Edvard Laurits Ehlers (1863 –1937), (Fig. 2), who was a Danish dermatologist and the Mayor of Copenhagen’s son, and Henri-Alexandre Danlos (1844-1912), who was a French physician and dermatologist. Figure 2. Edvard Laurits Ehlers (1863-1937). A courtesy of National Library of Medicine.
Rud syndrome [8,9]	This rare syndrome is characterized by ichthyosis, obesity, hypogonadism, oligophrenia (defined as less-than-normal mental development), epilepsy, and endocrinopathies. It is named after, Einar Rud, who was a Danish physician, born in 1892. However, the existence of this entity has been questioned.

                  Table I. Selected Eponyms in the dermatology literature linked to Denmark

 

REFERENCES

1. Denmark. Wikipedia® [Internet]. Wikimedia Foundation. [Updated 14 May 2013; cited 14 May 2013]. Available from: http:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denmark

2. Bouchet A: [Gaspard II Bartholin and the vulvovaginal gland]. Ann Chir. 2000;125:483-8.

3. Roed-Petersen K, Erichsen G: The Danish pediatrician Harald Hirschsprung. Surg Gynecol Obstet 1988;166:181-5.

4. Al Aboud K, Al Aboud A: Eponyms in the dermatology literature linked to Russia. Our Dermatol Online. 2013;4(Suppl. 1):414-5.

5. Grando SA, Grando AA, Glukhenky BT, Doguzov V, Nguyen VT, Holubar K: History and clinical significance of mechanical symptoms in blistering dermatoses: a reappraisal. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2003;48:86-92.

6. Asboe-Hansen G: Blister-spread induced by finger-pressure, a diagnostic sign in pemphigus. J Invest Dermatol. 1960;34:5-9.

7. Scully C, Langdon J, Evans J: Marathon of eponyms: 5 Ehlers- Danlos syndrome. Oral Dis. 2009;15:517-8.

8. Al Aboud K, Al Aboud D: Einar Rud and the syndrome that bears his name. Eur J Dermatol. 2011;21:1025-6.

9. Happle R: Rud syndrome does not exist. Eur J Dermatol. 2012;22:7.