Gerhard Henrik Armauer Hansen | |
|---|---|
 Gerhard Armauer Hansen | |
| Born | (1841-07-29)29 July 1841 Bergen, Norway |
| Died | 12 February 1912(1912-02-12) (aged 70) Florø, Norway |
| Alma mater | University of Oslo |
| Awards | Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Epidemiology |
Gerhard Henrik Armauer Hansen (Norwegian pronunciation:[ˈɡæ̂rhɑɖɑrˈmæ̀ʉərˈhɑ̂nsn̩]; 29 July 1841 – 12 February 1912) was aNorwegian physician, remembered for his identification of thebacteriumMycobacterium leprae in 1873 as theetiologic agent ofleprosy.[1][2] His distinguished work was recognized at the International Leprosy Congress held at Bergen in 1909.[3]
Hansen was born inBergen, Norway, and attended theBergen Cathedral School. He worked atRikshospitalet inChristiania (now Oslo) and as a doctor inLofoten. In 1868 Hansen returned to Bergen to study leprosy while working at Lungegård Hospital withDaniel Cornelius Danielssen, a noted expert.[4]
Leprosy was regarded as largelyhereditary or otherwisemiasmic in origin. Hansen concluded on the basis ofepidemiological studies that leprosy was acommunicable disease with a specific cause.[5] In 1870–71 Hansen travelled toBonn andVienna to gain the training necessary for him to prove hishypothesis.[6] In 1873, he announced the discovery ofMycobacterium leprae in the tissues of all people with the condition, although he did not identify them as bacteria, and received little support.[6] The discovery was made with a "new and better" microscope.[7]
In 1879 Hansen gave tissue samples toAlbert Neisser, who then successfullystained the bacteria and announced his findings in 1880, claiming to have discovered the disease-causing organism. Neisser tried to downplay the assistance of Hansen[citation needed]. Hansen's claim was weakened by his failure to produce a puremicrobiological culture in an artificial medium, or to prove that therod-shaped organisms were infectious. Further, Hansen had attempted to infect at least one female patient with the nodular form of leprosy without consent, and although no damage was caused, the case ended up in court and Hansen lost his post at the hospital.[8] The case helped introduceinformed consent formedical research in Norway.[9][10]
Hansen remained medical officer for leprosy in Norway and it was through his efforts that the leprosy acts of 1877 and 1885 were passed, leading to a steady decline of the disease in Norway from 1,800 known cases in 1875 to just 575 cases in 1901.
Hansen had hadsyphilis since the 1860s but died ofheart disease. He was an atheist.[6][11]
He was a co-founder and a board member of the Bergen chapter of theNorwegian Association for Women's Rights, led by his sister, prominent women's rights advocateAmalie Hansen [no].[12][13]
