Few diseases can have more synonyms and none more eponyms. C.P. Howard collected more than 20 such terms.

Looking back into antiquity, the Persian writer, Sayyid Ismail Al- Jurjani in 1136 may have been the first to connect exophthalmos with goitre. Flajani’s (1741– 1808) description in 1802 in Ascoli, Italy, failed to associate the goitre, exophthalmos, and palpitations as one disease, and his account failed to attract much attention. Indeed, Antonia Testa’s (1756– 1814) reference in 1800 to the coincidence of prominent eyes and a cardiac disorder likewise did not attract much attention. Testa was the professor of medicine and surgery at Bologna and was said to be a learned theorist, but a mediocre clinician. Caleb Hillier Parry (1755– 1822) of Bath, England observed a case in August 1786, but his description of eight cases of ‘enlargement of the thyroid gland in connection with enlargement or palpitation of the heart’ was not published until 1825, 3 years after his death. His second case, seen in 1802, was of particular interest as it seemed to be precipitated by an acute stress, a factor that still exercises the interest of many observers. He considered that the thyroid was acting as a reservoir for the blood being pumped out by the hyperactive heart. This posthumous report in 1825 still preceded Graves’ publication by a decade.

Robert J. Graves (1796– 1853) of Dublin, Ireland, gave a clinical lecture at the Meath Hospital in Dublin and subsequently published a short article on ‘palpitation of the heart with enlargement of the thyroid gland’ in 1835. He then included these accounts in textbooks that he later wrote. These texts drew considerable attention to the disorder. This attention was later amplified in 1840 by Karl Adolf von Basedow (1799– 1854) of Merseburg, Germany, who described four patients with exophthalmos, goitre, and palpitations; his description eave rise to the phrase ‘the Merseburg triad’. William Stokes (1804– 78), a colleague and friend of Graves in Dublin, actually described hyperthyroidism much more fully than Graves in his text, Diseases of the Heart in 1854.

In France, the first description of the disease was provided in 1856 by Jean- Martin Charcot (1825– 93). employing the term ‘cachexia exophthalmica’ to describe the condition. Charcot’s older colleague, Armand Trousseau (1801– 67) mentioned in a lecture at the Hotel Dieu in Paris in 1860, that iodine, which had been ‘in appropriately’ prescribed for hyperthyroidism had actually caused marked amelioration of the disease. Nevertheless, he felt that the use of iodine in toxic goitre was dangerous, and warned against it.

The credit for the precedence for the description of this disease is scarcely resolved to this day. Sir William Osler in his third edition of his famous textbook of medicine belatedly gave the credit for the first important description of this disease to Parry. However, Trousseau had been impressed with the books written by Graves (who was highly regarded as an academic physician) and felt that Graves should be given the credit. In mid- Europe, many observers have given that honour to Basedow. Thus, although the term Graves’ disease is in common usage in English- speaking countries, Basedow’s disease is generally used in Europe. In Italy, the term, Flajani’s disease is sometimes heard. At international meetings, the term Graves’ disease is most commonly heard.

The cause of Graves’ disease remained unknown, and led to many interesting hypotheses, most notably the importance of psychological factors. Rolleston has summarized the various influences which were thought to be at work in causing this condition. In 1907, Charles Mayo of Rochester, Minnesota, first used the term ‘hyperthyroidism’, to conform to the idea we hold today, namely that the disorder represents an excess of thyroid hormone. In 1910, Kocher coined the term ‘Jod- Basedow’ to describe hyperthyroidism precipitated or aggravated by excess iodine. David Marine also suggested that iodine might actually be a treatment for Graves’ disease. A few years later, in 1913, Henry Plummer (1874– 1937) was able to separate Graves’ disease from hyperthyroidism related to toxic nodular goitre (Plummer’s disease). In 1924, Plummer and Boothby showed that the preoperative use of iodine greatly simplified the operative management of Graves’ disease.

Treatment of Graves’ disease remained mainly surgical until 1942, when Hertz and Roberts introduced radioactive iodine for the diagnosis and treatment of Graves’ disease. The following year, Astwood used thiourea and thiouracil in the medical treatment of Graves’ disease, thus initiating the era of antithyroid drug therapy. In 1956, the year that thyroid autoantibodies were first identified, Adams and Purves in New Zealand described the presence of an abnormal stimulator of the thyroid in Graves’ disease which later proved to be an antibody directed against the thyroid- stimulating hormone receptor (thyroid- stimulating antibody). Thus, Graves’ disease, as well as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, proved to be an auto immune disorder.

اخر الاخبار

اخبار العتبة العباسية المقدسة

قسم الشؤون الخدمية يهيئ أماكن لاستراحة الزائرين في محيط العتبة العباسية المقدسة

جناح العتبة العباسية المقدسة في معرض طهران الدولي للقرآن الكريم يشهد إقبالًا واسعًا

ضمن خطته الخاصة بشهر رمضان المبارك.. قسم المضيف يقدم 3500 وجبة إفطار يوميًّا للزائرين.

قسم الشؤون الفكرية يطلق مسابقة النور الزكي الرمضانية في ذي قار

المزيد

الآخبار الصحية

دراسة تحذر من الإفراط في ممارسة الرياضة.. كيف يضر دماءك؟

الطهي بزيت الزيتون.. مضر أم مفيد؟

دماغ الرضع في خطر.. دراسة تحذر من "العدو الخفي"

التمر بالحليب عند الإفطار.. "كنز صحي" في رمضان

المزيد

الآخبار التكنلوجية

أثر نفسي غير متوقع للرياضة.. مرتبط بالغضب

القمر يواصل الانكماش.. رصد تشققات حديثة على سطحه

إطلاق أول تطبيق مراسلة "مشفّر".. ثورة في عالم الدردشة

خلل تقني يؤجّل أول رحلة مأهولة إلى القمر منذ عقود

المزيد

مواضيع ذات صلة

Infections of the Urinary Tract : Pathogenesis

Infections of the Urinary Tract : Etiologic Agents

Infections of the Sinuses

Pathology of Acromegaly

clinical Features of Hyperprolactinaemia and Prolactinomas

Infections of the Ears : Diseases, Epidemiology, and Etiology of Disease

Encephalitis/Meningoencephalitis

Secondary Forms of Pure Red Cell Aplasia

Pathophysiology of Paroxysmal Nocturnal Hemoglobinuria

Clinical Manifestations of Paroxysmal Nocturnal Hemoglobinuria

Hypothyroidism: Etiology and Treatment

Introduction and History of Paroxysmal Nocturnal Hemoglobinuria