Heinrich Koebner (German spelling Köbner); (2 December 1838 – 3 September 1904) was a

German-Jewish The history of the Jews in Germany goes back at least to the year 321, and continued through the Early Middle Ages (5th to 10th centuries CE) and High Middle Ages (''circa'' 1000–1299 CE) when Jewish immigrants founded the Ashkenazi Jewish ...

dermatologist Dermatology is the branch of medicine dealing with the skin.''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary.'' Random House, Inc. 2001. Page 537. . It is a speciality with both medical and surgical aspects. A dermatologist is a specialist medical ...

born in Breslau. He studied medicine in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

, earning his doctorate in 1859 at Breslau. Afterwards he performed hospital duties in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

under Ferdinand von Hebra (1816–1880) and in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

with Alfred Hardy (1811–1893). In 1876 he became director of the policlinic for

syphilis Syphilis () is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium ''Treponema pallidum'' subspecies ''pallidum''. The signs and symptoms of syphilis vary depending in which of the four stages it presents (primary, secondary, latent, an ...

and diseases of the skin at the

University of Breslau A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

. In 1884 he established a new policlinic in Berlin, where he provided classes for physicians.

Koebner phenomenon

Koebner was a renowned dermatologist known for his research of

psoriasis Psoriasis is a long-lasting, noncontagious autoimmune disease characterized by raised areas of abnormal skin. These areas are red, pink, or purple, dry, itchy, and scaly. Psoriasis varies in severity from small, localized patches to complete ...

epidermolysis bullosa simplex Epidermolysis bullosa simplex (EBS) is a disorder resulting from mutations in the genes encoding keratin 5 or keratin 14.Freedberg, et al. (2003). ''Fitzpatrick's Dermatology in General Medicine''. (6th ed.). McGraw-Hill. . Epidermolysis bullosa s ...

and various

fungal A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from th ...

disorders. He is best known for the eponymous "

Koebner phenomenon The Koebner phenomenon or Köbner phenomenon (, ), also called the Koebner response or the isomorphic response, attributed to Heinrich Köbner, is the appearance of skin lesions on lines of trauma. The Koebner phenomenon may result from either a ...

", also known as isomorphic phenomenon. The Koebner phenomenon is the development of

isomorphic In mathematics, an isomorphism is a structure-preserving mapping between two structures of the same type that can be reversed by an inverse mapping. Two mathematical structures are isomorphic if an isomorphism exists between them. The word is ...

pathologic ''Pathologic'' ( rus, Мор. Утопия, Mor. Utopiya, ˈmor ʊˈtopʲɪjə, , More. Utopia – a pun on Thomas More's ''Utopia'' and the Russian word for "plague") is a 2005 role-playing and survival game developed by Russian studio Ice-Pick ...

lesion A lesion is any damage or abnormal change in the tissue of an organism, usually caused by disease or trauma. ''Lesion'' is derived from the Latin "injury". Lesions may occur in plants as well as animals. Types There is no designated classifi ...

s in the traumatized "uninvolved skin" of persons who have

cutaneous Skin is the layer of usually soft, flexible outer tissue covering the body of a vertebrate animal, with three main functions: protection, regulation, and sensation. Other animal coverings, such as the arthropod exoskeleton, have different de ...

diseases such as psoriasis. In other words, if a person has psoriasis, an injury is followed by new psoriatic lesions on the injured but otherwise normal (formerly non-psoriatic) skin, and these new lesions are similar to those of the diseased (originally psoriatic) skin in a clinical and

histopathological Histopathology (compound of three Greek words: ''histos'' "tissue", πάθος ''pathos'' "suffering", and -λογία ''-logia'' "study of") refers to the microscopic examination of tissue in order to study the manifestations of disease. Spec ...

sense. In 1872, Koebner explained this phenomenon to the Silesian Society for National Culture, by presenting a case in which years after the appearance of an isolated

plaque Plaque may refer to: Commemorations or awards * Commemorative plaque, a plate or tablet fixed to a wall to mark an event, person, etc. * Memorial Plaque (medallion), issued to next-of-kin of dead British military personnel after World War I * Pla ...

of psoriasis, several "traumatic" events in various areas of the body (tattoos, animal bite,

suppuration Pus is an exudate, typically white-yellow, yellow, or yellow-brown, formed at the site of inflammation during bacterial or fungal infection. An accumulation of pus in an enclosed tissue space is known as an abscess, whereas a visible collection ...

from

lymphadenitis Lymphadenopathy or adenopathy is a disease of the lymph nodes, in which they are abnormal in size or consistency. Lymphadenopathy of an inflammatory type (the most common type) is lymphadenitis, producing swollen or enlarged lymph nodes. In cli ...

, et al.) caused new outbreaks of psoriasis at exactly the same locations, in the same shape as the injured skin. "Koebnerization" may also occur with skin disorders such as

vitiligo Vitiligo is a disorder that causes the skin to lose its color. Specific causes are unknown but studies suggest a link to immune system changes. Signs and symptoms The only sign of vitiligo is the presence of pale patchy areas of depigmen ...

and

lichen planus Lichen planus (LP) is a chronic inflammatory and immune-mediated disease that affects the skin, nails, hair, and mucous membranes. It is not an actual lichen, and is only named that because it looks like one. It is characterized by polygonal, fla ...

. The following terms are derived from Koebner's name, and are still used by modern dermatologists: * " koebnerization": word to describe the isomorphic process taking place. * " reverse koebnerization": is seen when an area of psoriasis clears; an isomorphic nonresponse. Also referred to as the " Renbök phenomenon", with the term "Renbök" being the reverse spelling of "Köbner".JAMA Dermatology
Renbök Phenomenon and Contact Sensitization in a Patient With Alopecia Universalis * " pseudo-koebnerization": is used to describe the spread of an infectious agent such as

warts Warts are typically small, rough, hard growths that are similar in color to the rest of the skin. They typically do not result in other symptoms, except when on the bottom of the feet, where they may be painful. While they usually occur on the ...

and

molluscum contagiosum Molluscum contagiosum (MC), sometimes called water warts, is a viral infection of the skin that results in small raised pink lesions with a dimple in the center. They may become itchy or sore, and occur singularly or in groups. Any area of the sk ...

Koebner phenomenon

References

Further reading