François Leuret (29 December 1797 – 5 January 1851) was a French

anatomist Anatomy () is the branch of morphology concerned with the study of the internal structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old scien ...

and

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry. Psychiatrists are physicians who evaluate patients to determine whether their symptoms are the result of a physical illness, a combination of physical and mental ailments or strictly ...

who was a native of Nancy. He studied medicine under

Jean-Étienne Dominique Esquirol Jean-Étienne Dominique Esquirol (3 February 1772 – 12 December 1840) was a French psychiatrist. Early life and education Born and raised in Toulouse, Esquirol completed his education at Montpellier. He came to Paris in 1799 where he worked a ...

(1772–1840), and was later chief physician at the Bicêtre 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 ...

. Two of his better known students were

Paul Broca Pierre Paul Broca (, also , , ; 28 June 1824 – 9 July 1880) was a French physician, anatomist and anthropologist. He is best known for his research on Broca's area, a region of the frontal lobe that is named after him. Broca's area is involve ...

(1824–1880) and Louis Pierre Gratiolet (1815–1865). Leuret was also chief-editor of ''Annales d’hygiène publique et de médecine légale'', an influential journal of

hygiene Hygiene is a set of practices performed to preserve health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "Hygiene refers to conditions and practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases." Personal hygiene refer ...

and

forensic medicine Forensic medicine is a broad term used to describe a group of medical specialties which deal with the examination and diagnosis of individuals who have been injured by or who have died because of external or unnatural causes such as poisoning, assa ...

. Leuret is remembered for his work in

comparative anatomy Comparative anatomy is the study of similarities and differences in the anatomy of different species. It is closely related to evolutionary biology and phylogeny (the evolution of species). The science began in the classical era, continuing in t ...

of the

brain The brain is an organ (biology), organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It consists of nervous tissue and is typically located in the head (cephalization), usually near organs for ...

with Louis Gratiolet. The two men did extensive topographic mapping of the folds and fissures of the

cerebral cortex The cerebral cortex, also known as the cerebral mantle, is the outer layer of neural tissue of the cerebrum of the brain in humans and other mammals. It is the largest site of Neuron, neural integration in the central nervous system, and plays ...

. Leuret coined the name "fissure of Rolando" after Italian anatomist

Luigi Rolando Luigi Rolando (16 June 1773, Turin – 20 April 1831, Turin) was an Italian anatomist known for his pioneering research in brain localization of function. He studied medicine in Turin, later continuing his education in Florence, where he studie ...

(1773–1831) for what is now known as the

central sulcus In neuroanatomy, the central sulcus (also central fissure, fissure of Rolando, or Rolandic fissure, after Luigi Rolando) is a sulcus, or groove, in the cerebral cortex in the brains of vertebrates. It is sometimes confused with the longitudinal ...

of the brain. Leuret was an important figure in the early days of French

psychiatry Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of deleterious mental disorder, mental conditions. These include matters related to cognition, perceptions, Mood (psychology), mood, emotion, and behavior. ...

. He stressed the importance of using a rational and humane approach in treatment of the mentally ill, and also believed that the criminally insane were sick individuals who were incapable of controlling their behavior. He felt that the origins of mental illness were unknown, and that it was wrong to define madness from only a somatic standpoint. Leuret's psychiatric theories put him at odds with other French physicians, particularly those who thought that the source of

mental illness A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness, a mental health condition, or a psychiatric disability, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. A mental disorder is ...

could be localized to a specific part of the brain's anatomy. He was also scornful of the speculative theory of

phrenology Phrenology is a pseudoscience that involves the measurement of bumps on the skull to predict mental traits. It is based on the concept that the Human brain, brain is the organ of the mind, and that certain brain areas have localized, specific ...

Selected writings

* ''Du traitement moral de la folie'', 1840 * ''Anatomie comparée du système nerveux, considéré dans ses rapports avec l'intelligence'' (volume 1- 1839, the second volume published in 1857 by Gratiolet)

References

Inheriting Madness: Professionalization and Psychiatric Knowledge in 19th Century France; Google Books

The human brain and spinal cord By Edwin Clarke and Charles Donald O'Malley
Heirs of Hippocrates

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leuret, Francois 1797 births 1851 deaths French psychiatrists French anatomists Physicians from Nancy, France 19th-century French writers French male writers 19th-century French male writers

Selected writings

See also

References

External links