A Short History of the Gout and the Rheumatic Diseases

A Short History of the Gout and the Rheumatic Diseases by W. S. C. Copeman offers the first full historical account of an ailment long caricatured in art and satire but dreaded by its sufferers. For centuries gout was seen as a disease of privilege, afflicting statesmen and generals at decisive moments, with consequences that could ripple across nations. Copeman traces the condition’s deep lineage from classical antiquity, when effective remedies were first discovered and then lost, through...