The Gazeta Médica da Bahia (in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

: ''Medical Gazette of Bahia''), also known as GMBahia, is a medical

scientific journal In academic publishing, a scientific journal is a periodical publication intended to further the progress of science, usually by reporting new research. Content Articles in scientific journals are mostly written by active scientists such as s ...

published by the Faculty of Medicine of Bahia, the oldest

medical school A medical school is a tertiary educational institution, or part of such an institution, that teaches medicine, and awards a professional degree for physicians. Such medical degrees include the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS, M ...

in Brazil, currently a part of the

Federal University of Bahia The Federal University of Bahia ( pt, Universidade Federal da Bahia, UFBA) is a public university located mainly in the city of Salvador. It is the largest university in the state of Bahia and one of Brazil's most prestigious educational institu ...

History

It was created in 1866 and published regularly until 1934, when its publication was suspended. It was then resumed during the years of 1966–1972, and a single issue was published in 1976. In 1984, the journal's cumulative index was organized, and it was found that 3870 works had been published in it until then. Publication was resumed in 2004. In 2008, during the medical faculty's bicentenary, all previously published editions of the journal were made freely available on the internet. The scientists publishing articles in the magazine around the turn of the 19th century became known in contemporary

historiography Historiography is the study of the methods of historians in developing history as an academic discipline, and by extension is any body of historical work on a particular subject. The historiography of a specific topic covers how historians ha ...

as the Bahian Tropicalist School, which pioneered, together with other physicians of the time, a wave of experimental

etiological Etiology (pronounced ; alternatively: aetiology or ætiology) is the study of causation or origination. The word is derived from the Greek (''aitiología'') "giving a reason for" (, ''aitía'', "cause"); and ('' -logía''). More completely, e ...

studies focused on understanding tropical diseases common among the population of Brazil, rejecting the view common among proponents of

Degeneration theory Social degeneration was a widely influential concept at the interface of the social and biological sciences in the 18th and 19th centuries. During the 18th century, scientific thinkers including Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon, Johann Fr ...

that such diseases would be caused by the local climate or by race mixing, as was proposed by some academics at the time. Though this group played a key role in dismantling such beliefs, Flavio Coelho Edler points out in ''Escola Tropicalista Baiana (Bahia Tropical School): the mystical origin of tropical medicine in Brazil'' that, unlike many historical studies claim, the school was not isolated from other medical groups at the time, nor did it perform an abrupt, radical rupture from previous academic beliefs; rather it was part of a general wave of scientific and medical practices aimed at distancing national practices away from blind reproduction of European medical knowledge in favour of local experimentation.

Contributors

Notable contributors include Wucherer, who published in it the first description of

Hookworm infection Hookworm infection is an infection by a type of intestinal parasite known as a hookworm. Initially, itching and a rash may occur at the site of infection. Those only affected by a few worms may show no symptoms. Those infected by many worms may ...

and

Filariasis Filariasis is a parasitic disease caused by an infection with roundworms of the Filarioidea type. These are spread by blood-feeding insects such as black flies and mosquitoes. They belong to the group of diseases called helminthiases. These par ...

, as well as classifying most local venomous snakes; Silva Lima's early studies on

Beriberi Thiamine deficiency is a medical condition of low levels of thiamine (Vitamin B1). A severe and chronic form is known as beriberi. The two main types in adults are wet beriberi and dry beriberi. Wet beriberi affects the cardiovascular system, r ...

and the early works on public health and legal medicine by Raimundo Nina Rodrigues.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gazeta Medica da Bahia Academic journals published by universities of Brazil General medical journals Publications established in 1866 1866 establishments in Brazil