Introduction - Uppsala Monitoring Centre

1770 Van Swieten (1700-1772) had 4,880 registered cases of syphilitic
patients treated orally with 0.1% mercuric chloride (corrosive
sublimate).
1771 Albrecht Van Haller (1708-1777) published the ‘Pharmacopoeia
Helvetica’ and wrote on testing new drugs: ‘In the first place the remedy
is to be tried on the healthy without any foreign substances mixed with it.
Having been examined as to its colour and taste, a small dose is taken,
and the attention directed to all effects which thereupon occur: such as
pulse, the temperature, the respiratory, the excretion. Having thereby
adduced their obvious phenomenon is healthy you may pass to
experiments upon the sick body.’ (Earles, 1961).
1773 The journal ‘Medical and Philosophical Commentaries’ launched in
Edinburgh, containing abstracts of books relevant to clinicians. In
1796 it became the ‘Annals of Medicine’ and in 1805 it became the
‘Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Journal’ and later ‘The Edinburgh
Medical Journal’.
‘There is an axiom in physic, which says, that all good medicines are
dangerous: like instruments of surgery, the better they are, the more
easily will they destroy the patient, in the hands of an unskilful
operator.’ (James, 1773).
1774 De Malon in his book ‘Preserver of the blood: or bleeding
demonstrated to be always pernicious, and often mortal’ said
‘Whereas bleeding destroys one fourth of the sick in general’ (p57)
...’and its martyrdom is much the longest in the rolls of physic’ (p61)
‘bleeding is necessary in no kind of disorders, whatever, since we
have instances of all sorts of diseases cured without its aid.’ The tide
is turning against bleeding.
In the Pharmacopoia Reformata the author ‘MS’ said ‘No new
medicine how strongly recommend so be, receive the solemn
sanction of the college (Royal College of Physicians, London) before
its real worth be duly enquired into.’ (Earles, 1961).
1775 Presence of albumin in urine was demonstrated by Cotugno
(Cotugno, 1775; Rayer, 2005).
1775 Thomas Withers of Edinburgh wrote ‘Observations on the misuse of
medicaments’ where he criticizes the abuse of bleeding, emetics,
purging, sudorifics, stimulants, mercury, opium, tea, coffee, and bark.
He mentions only these two drugs.
1776 ‘Histoire des plantes vénéuses de la Suisse’ Contenant leur
description, leurs mauvais effets sur les hommes et sur les animaux,