Chlorosis (medicine)
Encyclopedia
In medicine
, chlorosis (also known as "green sickness") is a form of anemia
named for the greenish tinge of the skin of a patient. Its symptoms include lack of energy, shortness of breath, dyspepsia
, headache
s, a capricious or scanty appetite
and amenorrhoea
. Today this disease is diagnosed as hypochromic anemia
.
professor of medicine Jean Varandal from the word "Chloris
" (Greek: χλωρις) meaning "greenish-yellow," "pale green," "pale," "pallid" or "fresh". Both Lange and Varande claimed Hippocrates
as a reference.
In addition to "green sickness", the condition was known as morbus virgineus ("virgin's disease") or febris amatoria ("lover's fever"). Francis Grose
' 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue defined "green sickness" as: "The disease of maids occasioned by celibacy
."
In 1681, English physician Thomas Sydenham
classified chlorosis as a hysterical disease
affecting not only adolescent girls but also "slender and weakly women that seem consumptive." He advocated iron
as a treatment: "To the worn out or languid blood it gives a spur or fillip whereby the animal spirits which lay prostrate and sunken under their own weight are raised and excited."
Chlorosis is briefly mentioned in Casanova's Histoire de ma vie
: "I do not know, but we have some physicians who say that chlorosis in girls is the result of that pleasure [onanism] indulged in to excess."
In 1845 the French writer Auguste Saint-Arroman gave a recipe for a treatment by medicinal chocolate that included iron filings in his De L'action du café, du thé et du chocolat sur la santé, et de leur influence sur l'intelligence et le moral de l'homme and in 1872, French physician Armand Trousseau
also advocated treatment with iron, although he still classified chlorosis as a "nervous disease".
In 1887, physician Andrew Clark
of London Hospital proposed a physiological cause for chlorosis, tying its onset to the demands placed on the bodies of adolescent girls by growth and menarche
. In 1891, Frank Wedekind
's play Spring Awakening referenced the disease. In 1895, University of Edinburgh
pathologist Ralph Stockman built upon experiments demonstrating that inorganic iron contributed to hemoglobin
synthesis to show that chlorosis could be explained by a deficiency in iron brought on by menstrual blood loss and an inadequate diet. Despite the work of Stockman and the effectiveness of iron in treating the symptoms of chlorosis, debate about its cause continued into the 1930s. A character in T. C. Boyle's The Road to Wellville
suffers from chlorosis, and the narrator describes her green skin and black lips.
In 1936, Arthur J. Patek and Clark W. Heath of Harvard Medical School
concluded that chlorosis was identical to hypochromic anemia
.
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
, chlorosis (also known as "green sickness") is a form of anemia
Anemia
Anemia is a decrease in number of red blood cells or less than the normal quantity of hemoglobin in the blood. However, it can include decreased oxygen-binding ability of each hemoglobin molecule due to deformity or lack in numerical development as in some other types of hemoglobin...
named for the greenish tinge of the skin of a patient. Its symptoms include lack of energy, shortness of breath, dyspepsia
Dyspepsia
Dyspepsia , also known as upset stomach or indigestion, refers to a condition of impaired digestion. It is a medical condition characterized by chronic or recurrent pain in the upper abdomen, upper abdominal fullness and feeling full earlier than expected when eating...
, headache
Headache
A headache or cephalalgia is pain anywhere in the region of the head or neck. It can be a symptom of a number of different conditions of the head and neck. The brain tissue itself is not sensitive to pain because it lacks pain receptors. Rather, the pain is caused by disturbance of the...
s, a capricious or scanty appetite
Appetite
The appetite is the desire to eat food, felt as hunger. Appetite exists in all higher life-forms, and serves to regulate adequate energy intake to maintain metabolic needs. It is regulated by a close interplay between the digestive tract, adipose tissue and the brain. Decreased desire to eat is...
and amenorrhoea
Amenorrhoea
Amenorrhoea , amenorrhea , or amenorrhœa, is the absence of a menstrual period in a woman of reproductive age. Physiological states of amenorrhoea are seen during pregnancy and lactation , the latter also forming the basis of a form of contraception known as the lactational amenorrhoea method...
. Today this disease is diagnosed as hypochromic anemia
Hypochromic anemia
Hypochromic anemia is a generic term for any type of anemia in which the red blood cells are paler than normal. A normal red blood cell will have an area of pallor in the center of it; in hypochromic cells, this area of central pallor is increased...
.
History
In 1554, German physician Johannes Lange described the condition as "peculiar to virgins". He prescribed that sufferers should "live with men and copulate. If they conceive, they will recover." The name "chlorosis" was coined in 1615 by MontpellierMontpellier
-Neighbourhoods:Since 2001, Montpellier has been divided into seven official neighbourhoods, themselves divided into sub-neighbourhoods. Each of them possesses a neighbourhood council....
professor of medicine Jean Varandal from the word "Chloris
Chloris
thumb|250px|right| "As she talks, her lips breathe spring roses:I was Chloris, who am now called Flora." [[Ovid]]There are many stories in Greek mythology about figures named Chloris...
" (Greek: χλωρις) meaning "greenish-yellow," "pale green," "pale," "pallid" or "fresh". Both Lange and Varande claimed Hippocrates
Hippocrates
Hippocrates of Cos or Hippokrates of Kos was an ancient Greek physician of the Age of Pericles , and is considered one of the most outstanding figures in the history of medicine...
as a reference.
In addition to "green sickness", the condition was known as morbus virgineus ("virgin's disease") or febris amatoria ("lover's fever"). Francis Grose
Francis Grose
Francis Grose was an English antiquary, draughtsman, and lexicographer. He was born at his father's house in Broad Street, St-Peter-le-Poer, London, son of a Swiss immigrant and jeweller, Francis Jacob Grose , and his wife, Anne , daughter of Thomas Bennett of Greenford in Middlesex...
' 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue defined "green sickness" as: "The disease of maids occasioned by celibacy
Celibacy
Celibacy is a personal commitment to avoiding sexual relations, in particular a vow from marriage. Typically celibacy involves avoiding all romantic relationships of any kind. An individual may choose celibacy for religious reasons, such as is the case for priests in some religions, for reasons of...
."
In 1681, English physician Thomas Sydenham
Thomas Sydenham
Thomas Sydenham was an English physician. He was born at Wynford Eagle in Dorset, where his father was a gentleman of property. His brother was Colonel William Sydenham. Thomas fought for the Parliament throughout the English Civil War, and, at its end, resumed his medical studies at Oxford...
classified chlorosis as a hysterical disease
Hysteria
Hysteria, in its colloquial use, describes unmanageable emotional excesses. People who are "hysterical" often lose self-control due to an overwhelming fear that may be caused by multiple events in one's past that involved some sort of severe conflict; the fear can be centered on a body part, or,...
affecting not only adolescent girls but also "slender and weakly women that seem consumptive." He advocated iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
as a treatment: "To the worn out or languid blood it gives a spur or fillip whereby the animal spirits which lay prostrate and sunken under their own weight are raised and excited."
Chlorosis is briefly mentioned in Casanova's Histoire de ma vie
Histoire de ma vie
Histoire de ma vie is both the memoir and autobiography of Giacomo Casanova, a famous 18th century Italian adventurer...
: "I do not know, but we have some physicians who say that chlorosis in girls is the result of that pleasure [onanism] indulged in to excess."
In 1845 the French writer Auguste Saint-Arroman gave a recipe for a treatment by medicinal chocolate that included iron filings in his De L'action du café, du thé et du chocolat sur la santé, et de leur influence sur l'intelligence et le moral de l'homme and in 1872, French physician Armand Trousseau
Armand Trousseau
Armand Trousseau was a French internist. His contributions to medicine include Trousseau sign of malignancy, Trousseau sign of latent tetany, Trousseau-Lallemand bodies , and the truism, "use new drugs quickly, while they still work."-Biography:A native of Tours, Indre-et-Loire, Armand Trousseau...
also advocated treatment with iron, although he still classified chlorosis as a "nervous disease".
In 1887, physician Andrew Clark
Andrew Clark
Sir Andrew Clark, 1st Baronet , was a Scottish physician and pathologistHe was born in Aberdeen, the illegitimate son of Amelia Anderson and Andrew Clark. His father, who also was a physician, died when he was only a few years old...
of London Hospital proposed a physiological cause for chlorosis, tying its onset to the demands placed on the bodies of adolescent girls by growth and menarche
Menarche
Menarche is the first menstrual cycle, or first menstrual bleeding, in female human beings. From both social and medical perspectives it is often considered the central event of female puberty, as it signals the possibility of fertility....
. In 1891, Frank Wedekind
Frank Wedekind
Benjamin Franklin Wedekind , usually known as Frank Wedekind, was a German playwright...
's play Spring Awakening referenced the disease. In 1895, University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
pathologist Ralph Stockman built upon experiments demonstrating that inorganic iron contributed to hemoglobin
Hemoglobin
Hemoglobin is the iron-containing oxygen-transport metalloprotein in the red blood cells of all vertebrates, with the exception of the fish family Channichthyidae, as well as the tissues of some invertebrates...
synthesis to show that chlorosis could be explained by a deficiency in iron brought on by menstrual blood loss and an inadequate diet. Despite the work of Stockman and the effectiveness of iron in treating the symptoms of chlorosis, debate about its cause continued into the 1930s. A character in T. C. Boyle's The Road to Wellville
The Road to Wellville
The Road to Wellville is a 1993 novel by American author T. Coraghessan Boyle. Set in Battle Creek, Michigan during the early days of breakfast cereals, the story includes a historical fictionalization of John Harvey Kellogg, the inventor of corn flakes....
suffers from chlorosis, and the narrator describes her green skin and black lips.
In 1936, Arthur J. Patek and Clark W. Heath of Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School is the graduate medical school of Harvard University. It is located in the Longwood Medical Area of the Mission Hill neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts....
concluded that chlorosis was identical to hypochromic anemia
Hypochromic anemia
Hypochromic anemia is a generic term for any type of anemia in which the red blood cells are paler than normal. A normal red blood cell will have an area of pallor in the center of it; in hypochromic cells, this area of central pallor is increased...
.