La folie du doute avec délire du toucher, published in 1875, stands as a critical contribution to the early clinical understanding of obsessive-compulsive disorders and phobias. Henri Legrand du Saulle, a French physician and psychiatrist active during the mid-to-late nineteenth century, shaped medical practice through his focus on the intersection of mental pathology and judicial responsibility.
Early Medical Training and Influences
Born in Dijon in 1830, Legrand du Saulle developed his clinical expertise under established figures in French psychiatry. He served as an assistant to Bénédict Morel at Saint-Yon and later worked under Louis-Florentin Calmeil at the Charenton Asylum. He obtained his medical doctorate from the faculty in Paris in 1856, providing the foundation for his subsequent institutional appointments.
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His career involved significant tenure within the French hospital system. He replaced Prosper Lucas as a physician at the Bicêtre Hospital and later succeeded Louis Delasiauve in 1879 as chief physician for the department of epileptics at Salpêtrière Hospital. Beyond clinical settings, he served the Prefecture of Police starting in 1863 as a médecin-adjoint under Charles Lasègue, applying his expertise to the medico-judicial aspects of his field.
Forensic Psychiatry and Publications
Legrand du Saulle produced a substantial body of literature addressing both clinical observations and legal medicine. His writings spanned topics from hereditary insanity and epilepsy to the specific study of persecution delusions and hysteria. His 1864 work, La folie devant les tribunaux, examined the presence of insanity within legal proceedings, while his 1874 Traité de médecine legale, de jurisprudence médicale et de toxicologie codified his research in forensic medicine.
Professional Recognition
The medical establishment acknowledged his contributions through formal appointment and national recognition. In 1881, he received the distinction of Officer of the Legion of Honour. His death in Paris in 1886 concluded a career that navigated the transition of medicine into modern, specialized fields such as epileptology and psychiatric diagnostics.
Fast facts
- Born: 1830, Dijon
- Died: 1886, Paris
- Citizenship: France
- Fields: Psychiatry, Medicine, Neurology, Epileptology
- Notable Award: Officer of the Legion of Honour (1881)
- Professional Affiliation: Prefecture of Police
- Key Interest: Forensic psychiatry
Questions readers ask
What were the primary areas of research for Legrand du Saulle?
He focused on personality disorders, phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorders, epilepsy, and the medical-judicial aspects of psychopathology.
Where did he hold chief physician responsibilities?
He served as chief physician in the department for epileptics at Salpêtrière Hospital starting in 1879.
Achievements
- Officer of the Legion of Honour — 1881
- Fields: medicine, neurology and epileptology
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