Roland Kuhn (4 March 1912 – 10 October 2005) was a

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

psychiatrist who discovered that the drug

imipramine Imipramine, sold under the brand name Tofranil, among others, is a tricyclic antidepressant (TCA) mainly used in the treatment of depression. It is also effective in treating anxiety and panic disorder. Imipramine is taken by mouth. Common s ...

had

antidepressant Antidepressants are a class of medications used to treat major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, chronic pain, and addiction. Common side effects of antidepressants include Xerostomia, dry mouth, weight gain, dizziness, headaches, akathi ...

properties. he was born in

Biel Biel/Bienne (official bilingual wording; German language, German: ''Biel'' ; French language, French: ''Bienne'' ; Bernese German, locally ; ; ; ) is a bilingual city in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. With over 55,000 residents, it is the ...

and died in Scherzingen. In 1957, Kuhn published the results of his observations of the antidepressant properties of Imipramine in the Schweizerische Medizinische Wochenschrift (Swiss Weekly Medical Journal). More recently, it was discovered that he tested drugs on patients and children without

informed consent Informed consent is an applied ethics principle that a person must have sufficient information and understanding before making decisions about accepting risk. Pertinent information may include risks and benefits of treatments, alternative treatme ...

and without proper approval by the authorities during his time at the psychiatric hospital in Münsterlingen (where he was director 1971–1980), a practice that is highly unethical. Kuhn studied medicine in

Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...

, and moved into psychiatry as a second choice of specialty. He trained under Jakob Klaesi, the inventor of sleep therapy.

Personal life

He was married to Verena Gebhart. They had three daughters, Regula, Beatrix, and Ursula.

Honours

Doctor of Medicine in

Honoris causa An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...

from

Université catholique de Louvain UCLouvain (or Université catholique de Louvain , French for Catholic University of Louvain, officially in English the University of Louvain) is Belgium's largest French-speaking university and one of the oldest in Europe (originally establishe ...

and

University of Basel The University of Basel (Latin: ''Universitas Basiliensis''; German: ''Universität Basel'') is a public research university in Basel, Switzerland. Founded on 4 April 1460, it is Switzerland's oldest university and among the world's oldest univ ...

Doctor of Philosophy in honoris causa from

Sorbonne University Sorbonne University () is a public research university located in Paris, France. The institution's legacy reaches back to the Middle Ages in 1257 when Sorbonne College was established by Robert de Sorbon as a constituent college of the Unive ...

References

1912 births 2005 deaths Daseinsanalysis Psychotherapists Swiss psychiatrists People from Biel/Bienne {{psychiatrist-stub