'Rob de Laffecteur': an antisyphilitic remedy in the age of charlatans

摘要

The history of "Rob de Laffecteur", a very popular remedy for a long time due to the confused theories concerning syphilis, reflects the backward thinking in the field of venereology, even up until the second half of in the 19th century, as, in 1858, twenty years after the discoveries by Philippe Ricord, some venereologists still believed in the gonorrhoea and syphilis virus.