Pierre Eugène Ménétrier (7 December 1859 – 22 August 1935) 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 ...
from
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 ...
. He is remembered for his description of a rare gastric disorder that was later to become known as
Ménétrier's disease
Ménétrier disease is a rare, acquired, premalignant disease of the stomach characterized by massive gastric folds, gastric hyperplasia, excessive mucus production with resultant Hypoalbuminemia, protein loss, and little or no Stomach acid, aci ...
.
In 1888 Ménétrier first described the disorder while performing post-mortem studies, noticing
hyperplastic
Hyperplasia (from ancient Greek ὑπέρ ''huper'' 'over' + πλάσις ''plasis'' 'formation'), or hypergenesis, is an enlargement of an organ or tissue caused by an increase in the amount of organic tissue that results from cell proliferatio ...
changes of the
gastric mucosa
The gastric mucosa is the mucous membrane layer of the stomach, which contains the gastric pits, to which the gastric glands empty. In humans, it is about one mm thick, and its surface is smooth, soft, and velvety. It consists of simple secretor ...
in
cadaver
A cadaver, often known as a corpse, is a Death, dead human body. Cadavers are used by medical students, physicians and other scientists to study anatomy, identify disease sites, determine causes of death, and provide tissue (biology), tissue to ...
s. At the time, he named the disease ''polyadenomes en nappe''. Although Ménétrier understood the debilitative factors of the disease, it wouldn't be until years later that the associated
protein-losing enteropathic aspects of the disorder were realized. Other names for "Ménétrier's disease" are "hyperplastic hypersecretory gastropathy" and "giant hypertrophic
gastritis
Gastritis is the inflammation of the lining of the stomach. It may occur as a short episode or may be of a long duration. There may be no symptoms but, when symptoms are present, the most common is upper abdominal pain (see dyspepsia). Othe ...
". He published his findings in a treatise titled ''Des polyadenomes gastriques et de leurs rapports avec le cancer de l’estomac''.
Ménétrier published writings on
Byzantine
The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...
and Greco-Roman medicine, and was a member of the
International Society for the History of Medicine.
[2001, Franz-Andre Sondervorst, ''Chronique de SIHM''] In 1935 he died from injuries sustained in an automobile accident in
Lisieux
Lisieux () is a Communes of France, commune in the Calvados (department), Calvados Departments of France, department in the Normandy (administrative region), Normandy Regions of France, region in northwestern France. It is the capital of the Pa ...
.
References
External links
RadiographicsEponyms in Radiology of the Digestive Tract: Historical Perspectives and Imaging Appearances
{{DEFAULTSORT:Menetrier, Pierre Eugene
1859 births
1935 deaths
French pathologists
Physicians from Paris