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Edmund Lesser was one of the most influential German dermatologists of his time. After the death of his academic teacher Oscar Simon in Breslau, the later director of the dermatology hospital at the Charité moved to Leipzig in 1882. At the University of Leipzig he quickly completed his habilitation in June of the same year and continued the course for dermatology and venereology started by Neisser. Later he also went into private practice, where he recruited patients for his lectures. In Leipzig Lesser also published his well-received handbook on skin diseases and venereology and organized the third meeting of the German Society of Dermatology in 1891. Despite his hope and his undisputable achievements, he was not granted professorship by the faculty of medicine in Leipzig. For this he had to become head of dermatology at the University of Bern in 1892. This manuscript deals with his ten important years in Leipzig as a prerequisite for his later merits in Berlin as well as the development of academic dermatology at the University of Leipzig.

Despite his scientific achievements while still in medical school, Albert Neisser was not accepted into internal medicine. This was typical for this period, as Jewish doctors were not allowed into esteemed disciplines such as internal medicine and surgery. Due to his important discoveries as a resident in dermatology he rose to international fame; however, he had to move to Leipzig to boost his later career in Germany. This step has been somewhat neglected and is therefore the topic of this article.

Johann Heinrich Rille, also characterized as a renowned nestor of German-speaking dermatovenereology, was named as extraordinary professor for syphilis and skin diseases in Leipzig in 1902, the second oldest university in Germany. Although the chair of dermatology was promised this was postponed for many years, not only because of World War I but also due to an ongoing struggle for dermatology to be accepted as an independent specialty in Germany. Finally, in 1919, the long overdue promotion to full professor was granted. Rille commented on this as "successful partial coping with the ordeal of German dermatology in Leipzig".

The relationships between German and Japanese dermatology are traditionally very strong. This fact led Professor Hornstein and Professor Nishiyama to organize joint meetings of dermatologists from both countries. The first meeting of the German-Japanese Society of Dermatology was held in Erlangen, Germany, following the 16th World Congress of Dermatology in 1967. Since then, meetings have been held alternating between Germany and Japan. These meetings were successfully organized by professors from both countries. In this article, I present memorable photos from these joint meetings.

The lousy disease (phthiriasis) and its potentially deadly consequences is well attested from antiquity until the 19th century. Intensely itching, vesicular or tumorous skin lesions defile the body and release swarms of insects spontaneously or after incision. Several well-known persons from antiquity and the early modern period are supposed to have died of the lousy disease. Both classicists and physicians have questioned the credibility of said accounts. By means of our interdisciplinary approach based on an analysis of different descriptions of the lousy disease from antiquity to the 19th century, this paper will present strong arguments for the existence of a potentially lethal form of phthiriasis. In contrast to its name, the lousy disease was most likely caused by a species of mites, similar to the one causing cystic subepidermal tumors in birds.

The term prurigo is still used to designate primary dermatoses and secondary reaction patterns. A clear definition of the term is not available nor a clear clinical classification of diseases categorized under the term. Furthermore, there is no certainty about the entity it was primarily used to refer to, and whether it should always be considered in relation to pruritus. The concept appears already in very early medical treatises. From the very beginning, it was used in dermatology in a non-uniform way, and was alternately accorded and denied the status of an independent disease entity. Moreover, prurigo was subdivided into many different forms, but their descriptions are partly very similar, so that, for instance, it is quite difficult today to draw any conclusions about the clinical entities the frequently used terms prurigo mitis and prurigo formicans referred to. In contrast, the term prurigo nodularis is still commonly used. This article traces exemplarily the use of the term prurigo in the standard medical textbooks up to the definition of prurigo nodularis.

The textbook "Dermatologie und Venerologie" originated with the 1st (1961) and 2nd (1969) German editions by Keining and Braun-Falco from the Departments of Dermatology at the Universities of Mainz and Marburg. The 3rd German edition was written by Braun-Falco, Plewig and Wolff (1984). The three authors became editors with the 4th German edition. Until now three English and several other foreign editions appeared. New editors are now Plewig, Burgdorf, Landthaler, Ruzicka and Hertl. Not only in German speaking countries but also in many other parts of the world the textbook is frequently used by students, residents, and dermatologists. With this retrospective view, the story of the revised editions of the book and its distribution is told.

Background: During the period of National Socialism, many politically motivated changes occurred in Germany in all areas of medicine and consequently in the field of dermatology as well. Most of the Jewish dermatologists were removed from their positions; many of the chair reshuffles were executed for political causes. These changes caused decline of dermatology in the time of National Socialism., Study: This report gives an overview of the developments and changes in the Dermatological University Hospital (DUH) at Greifswald between 1933 and 1945. 3000 medical records were evaluated and archival data and literature reviewed. With these data we were able to reconstruct historical, medical and political aspects., Results: We found a rapid increase in the number of patients suffering from venereal diseases during World War II and an increase in compulsory treatment as well as in forced sterilization. In six cases, the DUH was involved in the practice of compulsory sterilization. Research was performed with mustard gas in patients at the DUH.

A retrospective on the remarkable life of the female Professor of Dermatology in Germany. She was best known for her studies of fungal diseases of the skin. The article is based on personal recollections of her daughter and a comprehensive study of her scientific work.

Since the establishment of dermatology as an independent discipline of medicine in the middle of the 19th century, pruritus or itch has been a subject of research. The goals were to discover the etiology of pruritus, to develop useful therapies and to achieve a classification within the system of skin diseases. Looking at historical aspects of pruritus demonstrates just how difficult it has been to approach this problem. The difficulties even influence present day pruritus research. For example, there is no definite international standard of pruritus. Etiology-oriented classifications have dominated, but have recently been supplemented by a clinical classification.

The development of injectable fillers for filling in depressions or wrinkles in the face is reviewed. After the hesitant interest on fillers to correct scars and depressions which started at the end of the 19th century, the development of new substances continued at a dizzying pace when public demand to treat the signs of aging increased dramatically starting in the mid 1980s. This led to a countless number of different substances. To obtain an optimal result in treating facial wrinkles or depressions the appropriate filler must be injected with a technique that suits best the individual indication. Fillers are classified in resorbable and non-resorbable permanent fillers. With resorbable fillers only a temporary result can be obtained, which means that the patient has to undergo repetitive treatments. With permanent, non-resorbable fillers long lasting results can be obtained that may last for years and even decades. All fillers may have side effects like swelling, erythema, nodules right after treatment and in very rare cases years after the injection foreign body granulomas may develop that may be resistant to treatment.