Lancisi
Historical document, translated for reference. It reflects medical knowledge of the 1920s–30s and is not medical advice.
Summary
Giovanni Maria Lancisi (1654-1720) was an Italian physician, anatomist, and thinker known for his materialist worldview, early identification of mosquitoes as carriers of swamp fever, and recognition of syphilis as a cause of heart disease and aneurysms.
Encyclopedia entry (1928–1936)
Lancisi Giovanni Maria (Giovanni Maria Laneisi, 1654-1720), known Italian physician, anatomist, and thinker. In his early works ("De sede animae cogitantis") his materialistic worldview is revealed; in particular he defined the "location of the soul" in the white matter of the brain. Among diseases, he described epidemics of influenza, malaria, and plague of cattle. Lancisi suggested that swamp fever is caused by contagium (miasmas) carried by mosquitoes (Culices). Finally, Lancisi was the first to draw attention to the etiological role of syphilis in diseases of the heart and blood vessels, and in particular in the occurrence of aneurysms. He also published remarkable observations on diseases of the brain and described nerves bearing his name. The principal works of Lancisi: "De subitaneis mortibus" (Rome, 1707); "De motu cordis et aneurysmatibus" (Rome, 1745).
Related articles
Cite this page
“Lancisi.” Soviet Medical Encyclopedia. English translation of Bolshaya Meditsinskaya Entsiklopediya, 1st ed. (Moscow, 1928–1936), ed. N. A. Semashko. https://sovietmedicalencyclopedia.pages.dev/article/lancisi/