In the past, medical illnesses were often described based on their symptoms or their most obviously observable effects. You may hear family members describe their own medical conditions using terms that are no longer recognizable or in common use.
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A number of common medical terms have gone out of style, often in favor of more descriptive and accurate medical terms. But the “old,” often colorful names still persist, and you may even come across them if you like to read historical books or older fictional stories.
With advancing medical knowledge and standardization of medical education worldwide, healthcare professionals are familiar with formal terms for medical illnesses, and many do not even recognize disease names of a past era. In the medical setting, you are more likely to hear the formal name of your medical conditions than you are to hear a casual name.
In recent years, disease names are often based on a description of their underlying biological process, or they may be named after the doctor who discovered important features of the disease—in other words, who “discovered” the disease.
A good example of that is leprosy. This highly contagious disease and disfiguring bacterial infection is known asHansen’s disease, after a doctor from Norway, Gerhard Henrik Armauer Hansen, who discovered the microbe that causes it in 1873. The bacterium that causes the infection is calledMycobacterium leprae.
There’s no question that outdated disease names are interesting. What was once popularly known as French pox is now referred to as syphilis, for instance.
Here is a list of outdated terms for diseases and conditions, along with their more current names. You may not need to know these in your everyday life, but the next time you pick up a copy of Poe’s poetry, this bit of medical trivia could come in handy.
A Word From Verywell
As medicine is advancing, so is the terminology. Some local descriptions of medical conditions might not make sense outside of a small geographic region. But formal descriptions help in communication when it comes to medical illnesses. While many outdated names have interesting characteristics, the contemporary names assigned to specific illnesses, medical conditions, and psychiatric disorders are more accurate and scientific.
Nevertheless, you may encounter a friend or relative who tells you about their illness using what is now considered an outdated term, and familiarity with the term can help you understand and empathize with what they are going through.
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Couto dal secco RG, França K, Castillo D, et al.A synopsis of the history of Hansen’s disease.Wien Med Wochenschr. 2017;167(Suppl 1):27-30. doi:10.1007/s10354-017-0590-2
Engelhardt E.Apoplexy, cerebrovascular disease, and stroke: historical evolution of terms and definitions.Dement Neuropsychol. 2017;11(4):449–453. doi:10.1590/1980-57642016dn11-040016
Barberis I, Bragazzi NL, Galluzzo L, Martini M.The history of tuberculosis: from the first historical records to the isolation of Koch’s bacillus.J Prev Med Hyg. 2017;58(1):E9–E12.
Puente AE, Heller S, Sekely A.Neuropsychological analysis of an idiot savant: A case study.Appl Neuropsychol Adult. 2016 Nov-Dec;23(6):459-63. doi:10.1080/23279095.2016.1159563
Dandagi GL, Byahatti SM.An insight into the swine-influenza A (H1N1) virus infection in humans.Lung India. 2011;28(1):34–38. doi:10.4103/0970-2113.76299
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