Authors:

Juan Carlos Zambrano Bürgl (1)

Jaime Eduardo Bernal Villegas (2)

Address:

Home: Diagonal 91 # 4B-35 apt 501, Bogotá DC 110221 - Colombia (preferred)

Work : Carrera 7 # 40-62, Bogotá DC. Colombia

Phone: Work (+571) 3208320 ext .2751

Email:

zambrano-j@javeriana.edu.co

jebernal@javeriana.edu.co

Institutional Affiliation: Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, School of Medicine, Institute of Human

Genetics, Bogotá DC, Colombia

Academic Degrees

(1) MD, FACS, Plastic Surgeon (2)MD, Doctor of Philosophy, Director of the Institute of
Human Genetics Javeriana Bogotá, AAHM Member

Title:

"Early descriptions of diseases in the Spanish South America by Joseph Gumilla, 1740"

Abstract

The Jesuit priest, father Joseph Gumilla, is author of a book titled "The Orinoco illustrated: Natural,
civil and geographical History, of this great river, and their brave waters: Government and customs
of its inhabitants Indians, with news of animals, trees, resins, herbs, and medicinal roots: and
above all, very unique, our Holly Faith and cases of many building conversions " published 1740.
Long title, but certainly very well thought due to how much his work covered. There are to be
found, between the multiple narratives its title promises, in careful reading, a large number of well
detailed medical descriptions of syndromes, diseases, treatments and medicines of which many
may be first documented historical descriptions. Gumilla´s book was consulted by Humboldt in his
expeditions to South America, and has been material for multiple trials and research in
anthropology, geography, history, theology, among others.

Gumilla had been sent to the Orinoco to evangelize the ancient natives of the Rain Forest of this
New World. He lived among these tribes for over 30 years and kept careful record of many new
customs, plants, insects, and places for Europeans at the time. In this case we're going to focus on
the descriptions relating to medicine, rescuing the work of father Gumilla as one of the richest
documents in this topic and due to its age, of great value for the history of medicine. Within this
masterful work, we find as well as magnificent geographical descriptions of such an important river
as the Orinoco, countless stories about Indians inhabiting its shores, their customs and multiple
descriptions of diseases, treatments and medical acts. We then concentrate on the importance of
this work for his medical contributions, of which some could be considered the first known
descriptions in South America of some pathologies, such as Dracunculiasis, piebaldism, mongolian
spots, cleft lips, and one of the first and best described introduction of Curare.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

By the end of this activity, the learner will:

Develop knowledge and understanding of professional behaviors and values

 Develop the capacity for critical thinking about the nature, ends and limits of medicine

 Deepen understanding of illness and suffering

 Identify successes and failures in the history of medical professionalism

 Recognize the dynamic interrelationship between medicine and society through history

 Critically appraise clinical management from a historical perspective

 Develop an historically informed sensitivity to the diversity of patients (including

appreciation of class, gender, socio-economic status, ethnicity, cultural, spiritual
orientations)