Skrljevo disease--two centuries of history

Skrljevo disease, also called Rijeka (Fiume) or Grobnik disease, by some physicians was first identified in the village of Skrljevo in Croatia in 1790. From texts dating back to the beginning of the 19th century it is clear that it was a non-venereal (endemic) form of syphilis and represented a great calamity for the local people and a problem for the physicians. The disease was considered by some to be lepra, scurvy, scabies or others. The occurrence of the disease in the region around Rijeka was closely associated with the poor socioeconomic conditions present at that time in the region. It is interesting to note that many of the greatest physicians of the time such as Alibert, Frank, Hebra, Sigmund were acquainted with the disease and dealt with it in their writings. This paper gives a brief chronology of the major political events in the region since that time, underlying the measures used in fighting the disease.