INTRODUCTION 



Chapter I 

 AN HISTORICAL RfiSUM^ 



Probably as a result of their small size and yellowish, fat- 

 like consistency, the adrenals were not recognized as specific 

 organs by the ancients, being overlooked as parts of the peri- 

 renal fat. The claim that the adrenals are mentioned in the 

 Bible is based on an error in the Vulgate translation. The 

 single Hebrew word, "Kalayot" (kidney) of Leviticus (Chap- 

 ter III) appears in the Latin of the Vulgate both as "ren" and 

 as "renunculus." To consider the latter as referring to the 

 adrenals is thus unjustified. 65 * 



Bartholomaeus Eustachius 190 gave the first clear description 

 of the adrenal glands. The sixth chapter of his "Opuscula 

 Anatomica" published at Venice in 1563 is entitled "De glan- 

 dulis quae renibus incumbunt." It describes and pictures the 

 adrenals as they occur in man. Despite the clear exposition 

 of Eustachius many of his followers still denied the glandular 

 entity of the adrenals. Thus Piccolomini still spoke of the 

 glands as displaced fragments of the kidney. Others ignored 

 their existence entirely. 



Eustachius called the adrenals the "glandulae renibus in- 

 cumbentes," a name, the connotation of which is retained in our 

 modern expression, "suprarenal." Subsequent writers used a 

 variety of appelations to designate the glands. Thus Casser- 

 ius called them the "renes succenturiate" which as "reins suc- 

 centurieux ,} was used in the French literature until displaced 

 by the modern expression, "glandes sun -enales . ," Winslow first 



* Superior figures refer to the numbered entries of the bibliography. For 

 the literature before 1850, the reader is referred to the excellent historical 

 reviews of Biedl 66 and Shumacker. 6661 ' 



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