Henry Granger Piffard (10 September 1842 in Piffard, New York – 8 June 1910

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

) was author of the first systematic treatise on

dermatology 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 ...

in America. He is heralded as one of the founders of dermatology in the U.S., having founded the ''Journal of Cutaneous and Venereal Diseases,'' which later became ''

JAMA Dermatology ''JAMA Dermatology'' is a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal published by the American Medical Association. It covers the effectiveness of diagnosis and treatment in medical and surgical dermatology, pediatric and geriatric dermatology, and onc ...

.'' He invented the dermal curette, was the first to use

x-ray An X-ray, or, much less commonly, X-radiation, is a penetrating form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. Most X-rays have a wavelength ranging from 10 picometers to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30&nb ...

to treat skin diseases and was a pioneer of flash photography in medicine.
Theroux, Z., & Cropley, T. (2016). Cannabis and Dr Piffard—A Century Ahead of the Curve. Jama dermatology, 152(9), 972-972.

Life and career

Henry Granger Piffard was born in Piffard,

Livingston County, New York Livingston County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 61,834. Its county seat is Geneseo. The county is named after Robert R. Livingston, who helped draft the Declaration of Independence and ...

, on September 10, 1842, his paternal ancestors coming from Dauphiné, France, and his mother's being of Dutch extraction. He was educated at the Churchill Military Academy at Ling and at the

University of the City of New York New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

, where he took his A. B. 1862 and A. M. 1865 and his M. D. at the

College of Physicians and Surgeons of New York Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons (VP&S) is the graduate medical school of Columbia University, located at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan. Founded ...

, in 1865, serving as intern at Bellevue Hospital. He specialized in skin diseases. He married, in 1868, Helen Hart, daughter of Gen.

William Kerley Strong William Kerley Strong (1805–1867) was a merchant and a brigadier general during the American Civil War. He was the commander of Benton Barracks and the districts of Cairo and St. Louis. Strong was also a prominent Democrat, noted his pro-Union s ...

, of New York. His appointments included: surgeon to the New York Dispensary for Diseases of the Skin, and professor of dermatology in the University of the City of New York. In 1862 he served for a short time with the Sanitary Commission on the James River, Virginia. He won distinction as a microscopist, pathologist and electro-therapeutist and had inventive capacity as well as mechanical ingenuity. His membership included the

New York County Medical Society The New York County Medical Society is a professional membership organization for physicians who live or work in the Borough of Manhattan. As such, it is part of the larger network of medical organizations which includes the American Medical Ass ...

; the

New York Academy of Medicine The New York Academy of Medicine (the Academy) is a health policy and advocacy organization founded in 1847 by a group of leading New York metropolitan area physicians as a voice for the medical profession in medical practice and public health ...

; the

New York Dermatological Society New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

, of which he was president in 1876. As part of his autodidactic endeavor at a time when the English-language literature on dermatology was scarce, Piffard collected works on skin diseases in German and French. He died of pneumonia in New York, June 8, 1910.

Bibliography

Piffard translated Alfred Hardy's ''The Dartrous Diathesis, or Eczema and its Allied Affections'' (1862) about

eczema Dermatitis is inflammation of the Human skin, skin, typically characterized by itchiness, erythema, redness and a rash. In cases of short duration, there may be small blisters, while in long-term cases the skin may become lichenification, thick ...

lichen A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.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 ...

and

pityriasis Pityriasis commonly refers to flaking (or scaling) of the skin. The word comes from the Greek πίτυρον "bran". Classification Types include: * Pityriasis alba * Pityriasis lichenoides chronica * Pityriasis lichenoides et varioliformis acut ...

(

dandruff Dandruff is a skin condition that mainly affects the scalp. Symptoms include flaking and sometimes mild itchiness. It can result in social or self-esteem problems. A more severe form of the condition, which includes inflammation of the skin, ...

) from French in 1868. Later, he authored some of the first extensive works on dermatology available in English. He contributed to Hady's ''dartrous diathesis'' theory, i.e., the link between above-mentioned skin diseases and

rheumatism Rheumatism or rheumatic disorders are conditions causing chronic, often intermittent pain affecting the joints or connective tissue. Rheumatism does not designate any specific disorder, but covers at least 200 different conditions, including art ...

. * ''A Guide to Urinary Analysis'' (1873) * ''An Elementary Treatise on Diseases of the Skin'' (1871) * ''A Treatise on the Materia Medica and Therapeutics of the Skin'' (1881) * ''A Practical Treatise on Diseases of the Skin'' (1891)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Piffard, Henry 1842 births 1910 deaths American dermatologists American pathologists 19th-century American non-fiction writers