Friedrich Oesterlen (1812-1877) und die Methodologie der Medizin

Friedrich Oesterlen (1812-1877), a physician of Württemberg, acted as a physician, zoologist, physiologist making experiments (Imbibition), pharmacologist, statistician and as a hygienist. It was shown in details how much Oesterlen was influenced by Carl August Wunderlich whose "physiological school" he joined. About 1844 a coolness which finally resulted in a rupture arose between Wunderlich and Oesterlen. Oesterlen was professor in ordinary of pharmacology and medicine in Dorpat for a short time from 1846 till 1848. From the summer term 1849 till the winter term of 1854 inclusively he professed at Heidelberg University. In 1854 he left his career. Besides comprehensive works on pharmacology, statistics, and hygiene he wrote a Medizinische Logik in 1852. It was an epistemology of the physician. Oesterlen tried to transfer the reliability of proofs from the recent natural science to the medicine. He thought the kind of the empirical thinking, the kind of the argueing and proving hitherto existing in the science of medicine as obsolete. As long as there is no changing, the insecurity, the imperfect empiric in the medicine will not disappear. He recommended to study the phenomena going together in a constant manner, but to use — he may be influenced by J. St. Mill — additionally the experimental method. His scepticism with regard to therapeutics made Oesterlen to postulate to replace the therapeutical medicine by the prophylactic medicine. He regarded the numerical statistical method as a most important device in order to secure the medical recognition. Oesterlen can be classified as the link between J. G. Zimmermann, Cabanis, and C. Bernard in the history of the medical methodology. He is a theorist of the pre-experimental phase of the 19th century's medicine.