Auguste François Chomel (13 April 1788 in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

– 9 April 1858 in

Morsang-sur-Orge Morsang-sur-Orge (, literally ''Morsang on Orge'') is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. Population Inhabitants of Morsang-sur-Orge are known as ''Morsaintois''. Transport Morsang- ...

) was a French

pathologist Pathology is the study of disease. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in the context of modern medical treatme ...

Biography

He was a professor at the

Hôpital de la Charité Hôpital de la Charité (, "Charity Hospital") was a hospital in Paris founded by the Brothers Hospitallers of St. John of God in the 17th century. In 1935, it was closed and demolished to make way for the new faculty of medicine. Located at 45, ...

in Paris, and in 1827 succeeded

René Laennec René-Théophile-Hyacinthe Laennec (; 17 February 1781 – 13 August 1826) was a French physician and musician. His skill at carving his own wooden flutes led him to invent the stethoscope in 1816, while working at the Hôpital Necker. ...

(1781–1826) as chair of clinical medicine of the Faculté de Paris. In 1852 he declined swearing allegiance to

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...

, and thus was deemed having resigned his post. Chomel was an important member of the

pathological anatomy Anatomical pathology (''Commonwealth'') or anatomic pathology (''U.S.'') is a medical specialty that is concerned with the diagnosis of disease based on the gross examination, macroscopic, Histopathology, microscopic, biochemical, immu ...

movement of early 19th century France that was based on the scientific research of

Xavier Bichat Marie François Xavier Bichat (; ; 14 November 1771 – 22 July 1802) was a French anatomist and pathologist, known as the father of modern histology. Although he worked without a microscope, Bichat distinguished 21 types of elementary tissues ...

(1771–1802), René Laënnec and Gaspard Laurent Bayle (1774–1816). In 1828 he provided the first description of a type of acute

polyneuritis Peripheral neuropathy, often shortened to neuropathy, refers to damage or disease affecting the nerves. Damage to nerves may impair sensation, movement, gland function, and/or organ function depending on which nerve fibers are affected. Neuropa ...

that would later be known as Guillain–Barré–Strohl syndrome. Worthington Hooker (1806–1867), in his 1847 book ''Physician and Patient'', gives Chomel credit for the first contemporary usage of the medical axiom, ''

Primum non nocere ' () is a Latin phrase that means "first, do no harm". The phrase is sometimes recorded as '. Non-maleficence, which is derived from the maxim, is one of the principal precepts of bioethics that all students in healthcare are taught in school ...

'' ("First, do no harm").

Works

Selection

* ''Éléments de pathologie générale'' (Elements of general pathology); numerous editions: 1817, 1840; on line
4th ed., 1866
*
Des fièvres et des maladies pestilentielles
' (Fevers and pestilential diseases), 1821. *
Des dyspepsies
' (On dyspepsias), 1856. at Gallica *
Leçons de clinique
' (Clinical lessons), 1834–1840. at Gallica

List of online works

Online works
on Gallica

Bibliography

''Guillain–Barré–Strohl syndrome''
@

Who Named It ''Whonamedit?'' is an online English-language dictionary of medical eponyms and the people associated with their identification. Though it is a dictionary, many eponyms and persons are presented in extensive articles with comprehensive bibliograp ...

References

External links

* French pathologists 19th-century French physicians 1788 births 1858 deaths 19th-century French writers French medical writers French male non-fiction writers 19th-century French male writers {{France-med-bio-stub