Mendel Emanuel

Emanuel Mendel (born 28 October 1839, Bolesławiec - died 23 June 1970, Berlin-Pankowe) - a German neurologist and psychiatrist of Jewish origin.

He was born in a Jewish merchant family of Wolf Mendel and his wife Rosalie (nee Guhrauer). He started education in junior high school in Legnica. After graduation he started studying medicine at the University of Wrocław, and continued this at the same faculty in Berlin. In 1861, he was authorised to practice medicine as a profession.

During the wars waged by Prussia against Denmark, Austria and France, he worked as a doctor in the army. In 1868, he started to run a private medical practice for patients with nervous diseases in Pankow near Berlin. Soon it became a well-known and highly-regarded institution. In 1871, Mendel received habilitation in psychiatry, and in 1884, he was awarded professorship. In 1885, he gave up private practice and committed himself to working in a polyclinic in Karlstraße. He became director of the psychiatric unit. In his work, Mendel conducted studies of Parkinson's disease, epilepsy and progressive paralysis.

The year 1882 saw the foundation of his neurologist magazine called “Neurologisches Centralblatt”. Among the doctor's assistants were Edawrd Flatau and Max Bielschowsky.

Mendel was involved in politics as well. During the period from 1877 to 1881 he was a member of the Reichstag. In 1906, he was given the title of a Privy Medical Counsellor (German: Geheimer Medizinalrat).

Selected works:

E. Mendel, De operationibus ad sanandam epilepsiam adhibitis: Adjectis duabus observationibus (1860)
E. Mendel, Die progressive Paralyse der Irren (1880)
E. Mendel, Die Manie. Eine Monographie (1881)