Albert Jesionek (9 January 1870 in

Lindau Lindau (, ''Lindau am Bodensee''; ; Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic: ''Lindou'') is a major Town#Germany, town and Lindau (island), island on the eastern side of Lake Constance (''Bodensee'' in German) in Bavaria, Germany. It is the capital ...

– 8 December 1935 in

Giessen Giessen, spelled in German (), is a town in the Germany, German States of Germany, state () of Hesse, capital of both the Giessen (district), district of Giessen and the Giessen (region), administrative region of Giessen. The population is appro ...

) was a German

dermatologist Dermatology is the branch of medicine dealing with the skin.''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary.'' Random House, Inc. 2001. Page 537. . It is a speciality with both medical and surgical aspects. A dermatologist is a specialist medi ...

. He studied medicine at the universities of

Kiel Kiel ( ; ) is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein. With a population of around 250,000, it is Germany's largest city on the Baltic Sea. It is located on the Kieler Förde inlet of the Ba ...

Tübingen Tübingen (; ) is a traditional college town, university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer (Neckar), Ammer rivers. about one in ...

and

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

, where in 1894 he received his doctorate. After graduation, he spent several years working as an assistant at the municipal hospital in Munich, and from 1900 served as a deputy senior physician at the dermatology clinic in Munich under Karl Posselt (1837–1916). In 1906 he became an associate professor, and later the same year relocated to the

University of Giessen University of Giessen, official name Justus Liebig University Giessen (), is a large public research university in Giessen, Hesse, Germany. It is one of the oldest institutions of higher education in the German-speaking world. It is named afte ...

, where in 1913 he was appointed director of the ''Lupusheilstätte'' (sanatorium for lupus). In 1918 he was named a full professor of dermatology at the university.Jesionek, Albert
In: Neue Deutsche Biographie (NDB). Band 10, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1974, , S. 420 He is remembered for his work involving light-therapy for the treatment of skin tuberculosis. He recognized the importance of early studies done by

Joseph Doutrelepont Louis Guillaume Joseph Doutrelepont (3 June 1834, Malmedy – 30 April 1918, Bonn) was a German surgeon and dermatologist. In 1858 he received his medical doctorate in Berlin, then furthered his education at the University of Bonn as a student ...

and

Niels Ryberg Finsen Niels Ryberg Finsen (15 December 1860 – 24 September 1904) was a physician and scientist. In 1903, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine and Physiology "in recognition of his contribution to the treatment of diseases, especially lupus vu ...

in regards to light-therapy treatment for

lupus Lupus, formally called systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), is an autoimmune disease in which the body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue in many parts of the body. Symptoms vary among people and may be mild to severe. Common ...

and skin tuberculosis; and with Hermann von Tappeiner and Albert Jodlbauer at Munich, he had taken part in research of light from a biological standpoint. In 1910 he published a monograph on the latter subject titled "''Lichtbiologie''", followed by "''Lichtbiologie und Lichtpathologie''" two years later. From 1920 onward, he was involved with issues such as the pathogenesis of skin tuberculosis, the curative effect of

tuberculin Tuberculin, also known as purified protein derivative, is a combination of proteins that are used in the diagnosis of tuberculosis. This use is referred to as the tuberculin skin test and is recommended only for those at high risk. Reliable adm ...

s and the treatment of skin tuberculosis from a dietary standpoint, namely the "Sauerbruch-Herrmannsdorfer-Gerson diet". A specialized irradiation lamp known as a "Jesionek lamp" is named after him.

Selected works

* ''Lichtbiologie : Die experimentellen Grundlagen der modernen Lichthandlung'', 1910. * ''Praktische Ergebnisse auf dem Gebiete der Haut- und Geschlechtskrankheiten'' (3 parts, 1910–14). * ''Lichtbiologie und Lichtpathologie'', 1912. * ''Biologie der gesunden und kranken Haut'', 1916. * "Light as stimulus and its therapeutic indications" (published in English, 1926) * ''Tuberkulose und Haut; eine biologische Studie'', 1929 * ''Diätetische Behandlung der Hauttuberkulose und Ernährungsbiologie'' (with Lutz Bernhardt), 1930.OCLC WorldCat
published works

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jesionek, Albert 1870 births 1935 deaths People from Lindau Academic staff of the University of Giessen Academic staff of the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich German dermatologists