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The concepts of disease

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 July 2009

F. Kräupl Taylor
F. Kräupl Taylor*
Affiliation:
Emeritus Physician, Bethlem Royal and Maudsley Hospitals, London
*
1Address for correspondence: Dr F. Kräupl Taylor, 22 Redington Rd, London NW3 7RG.
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Synopsis

Concepts of disease have often been influenced by mediaeval scholasticdoctrines. Today these are best replaced by the premises of modern class logic. One of the basic problems then concerns the universal class of patients. Its solution depends on the answer to the question: What are the distinguishing attributes of this class? Scadding stipulated that these attributes must differ from the norm of a species and be associated with biological disadvantage. This paper argues that these attributes must be abnormal by the standards of a population and/or the norms of an individual, and must be associated with at least one of three criteria: (a) therapeutic concern for himself experienced by a person, (b) such concern for him experienced by his social environment, and (c) medical concern for him. This solution, though based on subjective criteria, seems to tally with the actual practice in diagnosing disease.

Type
Research Article
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 10 , Issue 3 , August 1980 , pp. 419 - 424
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1980

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