Medicine Overview - Concepedia

Principles

Definition

Medicine is an academic and applied field dedicated to the study, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, injury, and the promotion of health. It investigates human physiology and pathology, drawing upon principles from the natural and health sciences and employing rigorous scientific methodologies, including evidence-based research and clinical trials. Its significance lies in advancing knowledge and developing interventions to improve individual and public health outcomes.

Ontological type

Core Subfields

Therapeutic Approaches

Diagnostic Methods

Key developments

Key Figures

Foundations of Drug Therapeutics era

William Osler [1], associated with Johns Hopkins University [3] and Thomas Jefferson University [4], anchored foundational medical teaching during the Foundations of Drug Therapeutics era. His influential work The principles and practice of medicine [7] exemplified the era's shift toward standardized clinical reporting and the integration of measurable drug action into practice. Edward H. Kass [2], affiliated with Harvard University [5] and the University of Wisconsin–Madison [6], contributed to the management of infections with chemotherapeutic and antibiotic drugs in the urinary tract [8]. Kass's work on chemotherapeutic agents demonstrated the practical impact of antimicrobial therapy and reinforced the era's shift toward controlled therapeutic evaluation [2].

Evidence-Based Pharmacotherapy era

Jaap Verweij [1], a leading figure in Evidence-Based Pharmacotherapy during 1963-2010, was associated with the Institute of Cancer Research [3] and the University of California, San Francisco [4]. His contributions in this era include advancing standardized assessment of treatment response in solid tumors, as reflected in the New Guidelines to Evaluate the Response to Treatment in Solid Tumors [6], which provided reproducible endpoints crucial for trials and safety monitoring. Elizabeth A. Eisenhauer [2], active in the same era, was connected with the Institute of Cancer Research [3] and Johns Hopkins University [5]. Elizabeth A. Eisenhauer [2] contributed to the guideline framework, and her work on the New Guidelines to Evaluate the Response to Treatment in Solid Tumors [6] helped institutionalize evidence-based endpoints and rigorous safety evaluation that underpinned trial-driven pharmacotherapy.

Mechanism-Driven Therapeutics era

Peter Horby[1], affiliated with Emory University[3] and University College London[4], is a leading figure in this era of mechanism-driven therapeutics. His key contributions center on pivotal randomized trials in COVID-19, including the Dexamethasone in Hospitalized Patients with Covid-19[7], the A Trial of Lopinavir–Ritonavir in Adults Hospitalized with Severe Covid-19[8], and Remdesivir in adults with severe COVID-19: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicentre trial[9], which collectively established corticosteroids as standard of care and clarified antiviral strategies for mechanism-driven interventions. John J.V. McMurray[2], associated with Harvard University[5] and University of California, San Francisco[6], has been a central figure in this era. His key contributions include the Angiotensin–Neprilysin Inhibition versus Enalapril in Heart Failure[10], the 2013 ACCF/AHA Guideline for the Management of Heart Failure: Executive Summary[11], and The angiotensin receptor neprilysin inhibitor LCZ696 in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction: a phase 2 double-blind randomised controlled trial[12], collectively advancing mechanism-driven heart failure therapeutics.