Ewald Hecker
Ewald Hecker (20 October 1843,
Halle – 11 January 1909, Wiesbaden) was a German psychiatrist who was an important figure in the early days of modern psychiatry.[1] He is known for research done with his mentor, psychiatrist Karl Ludwig Kahlbaum
(1828-1899).
In the early 1870s Kahlbaum and Hecker did a series of studies on young
hebephrenia[2] and cyclothymia. He described hebephrenia as a disorder that begins in adolescence with erratic behaviour followed by a rapid decline of all mental functions, and cyclothymia as a cyclical mood disorder.[3]
The pioneering research of Kahlbaum and Hecker proposed the existence of more than one discrete psychiatric disorder,[4] which contrasted with the concept of "unitary psychosis" that maintained all psychiatric symptoms were manifestations of a single mental disorder.[5]
Hecker had progressive ideas concerning treatment of the mentally ill, and was an advocate in establishing a humane environment for mental patients. In 1891 he purchased a private psychiatric hospital in Wiesbaden.
References
- ^ Wilmanns, K. (2002). Ewald Hecker (1843–1909). (Translated and introduced by G. E. Berrios and A. Kraam.) History of Psychiatry 13: 455-465.
- ^ Hecker, E. (2009). Hebephrenia: A Contribution to Clinical Psychiatry. (Translated and introduced by A. Kraam.) History of Psychiatry 20: 87–106.
- ^ Yuhas, Daisy (1 March 2013). "Throughout History, Defining Schizophrenia Has Remained A Challenge (Timeline)". Scientific American. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
- ^ Hecker, E. (2004). On the Origin of the Clinical Standpoint in Psychiatry. (Translated and introduced by A. Kraam.) History of Psychiatry 15: 345–360.
- ^ Emil Wilhelm Magnus Georg Kraepelin (1856–1926). American Journal of Psychiatry.
Further reading
- On the Origin of the Clinical Standpoint in Psychiatry: By Dr Ewald Hecker in Görlitz
- American Journal of Psychiatry, Ewald Hecker
- Ewald Hecker: Cyclothymia, a Circular Mood Disorder. History of Psychiatry
External links
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