When the neurologist French Georges Gilles of Tourette’s has discovered a pathological state in 1885, characterized by verbal and motor tics involuntary, he probably didn’t know his name would soon be synonymous with the condition. Even today, this fairly common syndrome is known as Tourette [source: NINDS].
10 Diseases Named After People
Hundreds of diseases, syndromes and diseases are named after those who discovered them. These namesake include Crohn’s disease, Kaposi Sarcoma and Hodgkin’s disease, to name a few. Today, however, the World Health Organization wants to end the practice of appointing a medical condition after people (and also animals and places). The reason? The group often receives complaints from those who feel stigmatized when a disease is named after them something that they are expensive, or suffering economic losses as a result. Namely: swine flu is really transmitted by pigs, but after an outbreak in 2009, some countries banned imports of pork. After that the genus Norovirus was named, a Japanese individual complained because “Noro” is a common name in Japan [source: Kupferschmidt].
10 Diseases Named After People
Others respond that the naming of a disease after a person or a place makes it more memorable and descriptive than blandly him giving a technical moniker. In addition, using the name of a person is often a good way to pay tribute to the doctor or scientist who may have been the first person to discover the disease. Let’s look at the stories behind 10 diseases appointed people.
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