Introduction - Uppsala Monitoring Centre

much cried up by the Alexander, famous amongst the ancients, it
has grown into utter disuse.’
Hellebore nigra; ‘which he thinks more effectual than others, but
not so safe.’
Friedrich Hoffman (1660–1742). At the end of the 17 th century
Friedrich Hoffman described an epidemic of ergotism discovered in
Germany and he attributed the responsibility to the alkaloid
contained in the ergot of rye. In order to confirm his theory Hoffman
conducted experiments on animals, which revealed without doubt the
toxic action of the ergot. On the basis of this and other reports the
Academy of Science in Paris prohibited the therapeutic use of rye in
several European countries. The episode was significant as it
represented the first identification of an adverse effect of a drug;
whose gravity, confirmed on the basis of ad hoc studies, was such to
require a resolute intervention on the part of government
departments (Borghi & Canti, 1986).
‘Opera Medica’ in volume 15. ‘Friderici Hoffmanni, Opuscula
physico-medica antehac seorsim edita; iam revisa, aucta, emendata
et delectu habito recusa denuò revisa…’ [A short physio-medical
work previously issued already revised, enlarged, corrected and with
careful selection recently again revised] Ulmae: Bartholomai, 1725
Republished in 1788; another book by Hoffman is ‘Medicina Medica’,
in one volume.
1729 Sir Hans Sloane was consulted by a man concerning his four
children who had taken some henbane seeds mistaking them for
filberds 132 . Their symptoms were ‘great thirst, swimmings in the head,
dimness of sight, ravings and profound sleep; which last in one of
them continued for two days and two nights.’ He had them bled,
blistered, purged and made to vomit (Sloane, 1745).
1730 A German scientist, W.G. Frobenius changed the name of ‘sweet
vitriol’ to ‘ether’ (Spiritus vini aetherus) (Frobenius, 1730; Belluci,
1982).
1731 A Royal Edict charged the lieutenant-general of the Paris police to
analyze secret remedies (Bouvier, 1956).
1732 ‘An analytical enquiry into the specifick property of mercury, relating
to the cure of venereal disease…. with Dr Chicanneau’s method of
curing this distemper without salivation.’ by Vincent Brest and
132 Filberd = hazel nut