J. Antall szerk.: Medical history in Hungary 1972. Presented to the XXIII. International Congress of the History of Medicine / Orvostörténeti Közlemények – Supplementum 6. (Budapest, 1972)

E. Réti: Darwin's Influence on Hungarian Medical Thought (1868—1918) 157 J. Antall, A. Faiudy and K. Kapronczay: József Fodor and Public Health in Hungary

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2 Medical History in Hungary 1972 (Comm. Hist. Artis Med. Suppl. 6.) Rigler

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0 Fodor pointed out that "active immunity raises the alcalicity of blood lastingly, while passive immunity only for a short time, it is decreased by toxin and increased by antitoxin"

, furthermore, "the vaccillation in the alcalicity of blood is not determined by the mineral salts of blood but its organic materials".

21 To-day there are other theories in connection with this, nevertheless, the researches of Fodor greatly contributed to the creation of immunology and deserve attention. His researches were highly esteemed in his age which is proved also by the fact that during the cholera epidemy in Naples in 1892, Gantani suggested the introduction of Fodor's methods in treating the cholera patients. These above-mentioned investigations formed the theme of his lecture delivered on the Congress of Hygiene held in London in 1891. Partly based on the above-mentioned questions, Fodor carried out important researches in the field of social hygiene. This was highly actual at a time when, due to the rapid growth of the population of Budapest, the methods of the past could not possibly suffice. In the last third of the 19th century the building of houses did not keep pace with the increasing number of town-dwellers.

22 In the slums of the capital several thousands of workers lived under insanitary conditions in the unhealthy underground dwellings. Fodor investigated the social sanitary aspects of this phenomenon. Together with Aladár Rózsahegyi

2:ł he collected a vast evidence to prove that in these districts the occurrance 2

0 Gusztáv Rigler (1868—1930) hygienist, university professor. Obtained his medical diploma in Budapest in 1891. In this same year he became the assistant of Fodor and took an active part in Fodor's experiments referring to immunity. From 1899 onwards became professor at Kolozsvár (today Cluj in Rumania) then in the University of Szeged. Between 1926 and 1930 professor of public health in Budapest. He wrote several text-books and carried out research work in connection with mineral waters and public health affairs of schools. He organised several courses for the training of medical officers of health. 2

1 Üjabb kísérletek erekbe fecskendezett baktériumokkal. (Recent experiments with bacteria injected into veins), Hung. Ac. of Sciences. Communications, 1886. — the same in German: Deutsche med. Wochenschrift, 1886. — A vérnek baktériumölő képességéről (On the ability of blood to kill bacteria), Hung. Ac* of Science, Communications, 1887. — the same in German: Deutsche med. Wochenschrift, 1887. — Újabb vizsgálatok a vérnek baktériumölő képességéről és az immunizálásra vonatkozólag. (Recent investigations on the ability of blood to kill bacteria and relating immunity), Orvosi Hetilap, 1890. — the same in German: Centralblatt f. Bakt. und Parasitenkunde, 1890. — Zur Frage der Immunisation durch Alkalisation

: Centralblatt f. Bakt. 1891. — Über die Alkalizität des Blutes und Infektion: Centralblatt f. Bakt. 1895. XCIII. p. 225. — Fodor, J.

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Rigler, G.

: Neuere Untersuchungen über die Alkalizität des Blutes: Centralblatt f. Bakt. 1897, XXI. 134. 2

2 Bécs vagy Budapest az egészségesebb város? (Which is the healthier town, Vienna or Budapest?) Orvosi Hetilap 1882. — Egészségügyi kirándulások Budapesten (Sanitary excursions in Budapest). Orvosi Hetilap. Közegészségügyi melléklet. 1883. — Lakásügy Budapesten (Habitation in Budapest). Orvosi Hetilap, Közegészségügyi Melléklet 1883. 2

3 Aladár Rózsahegyi (1885—1896), hygienist, university professor. Obtained his medical diploma in Budapest in 1878. From 1877 onwards assistant of Fodor in the Institute of Public Health. In 1878 he studied black death epidemy in Russia. From 1881 onwards university professor of industrial public health.