Alfred Poland

Biography

• Born August 30, 1822, London son of Sir William Henry Poland
• 1839 – apprentice to Charles Aston Key (1798-1849) at Guy’s Hospital, London
• 1845 – demonstrator of anatomy at Guy’s Hospital
• 1847 – FRCS
• 1848-1861 Surgeon to the Royal Ophthalmic Hospital, Moorfields
• 1849 – assistant surgeon at Guy’s Hospital
• 1853 – Fothergillian Medal for an essay on “Injuries and Wounds of the Abdomen”
• 1857 – Jacksonian Prize for his essay on “Gunshot Wounds and their Treatment.”
• 1861 – surgeon at Guy’s Hospital
• Died on August 21, 1872 of consumption (pulmonary tuberculosis), a short but severe illness, accelerated by domestic trial [Medical Times]

Medical Eponyms

Poland syndrome (1841)

Unilateral congenital malformation characterized by unilateral defect of the pectoralis muscle with ipsilateral cutaneous syndactyly (webbed fingers).

Extremely rare condition. Male predominance, potential autosomal dominant inheritance.

1841 – Poland’s description was based upon a deceased convict named George Elt, whom he dissected at Guy’s Hospital.

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Poland-Möbius syndrome

Combination of Poland syndrome and Möbius syndrome II considered a specific genetic malformation with autosomal dominant inheritance.

1888 – Paul Julius Möbius (1853-1907) described congenital facial diplegia syndrome a rare congenital condition characterised by the absence or underdevelopment of the abducens (VI) and facial nerve (VII) nuclei.

Major publications

• Poland A. Deficiency of the pectoral muscles. Guy’s Hospital Reports, London, 1841; 6: 191-193. [plate]
• Gunshot Wounds and their Treatment.
• Nerves of the Orbit in Mammalia and Man

References

Biography

• Death of Mr Alfred Poland. Medical times and gazette
• Obituary: Alfred Poland. Br Med J 1872; 2: 282
• In Memoriam. Alfred Poland F.R.C.S. British and foreign medico-chirurgical review 1873; 2: 255-256
• Poland, Alfred (1822 – 1872) (rcseng.ac.uk)

Eponymous terms

• Möbius PJ. Ueber angeborene doppelseitige Abducens-facialis Lähmung. Münchener medizinische Wochenschrift. 1888; 35: 91-94 [Möbius syndrome]
• ClarksonP. Poland’s syndactyly. Guys Hosp Rep. 1962; 111: 335-46.
• Baudinne P, Bovy GL, Wasterlain A. Un cas de syndrome de Poland [A case of Poland’s syndrome]. Acta Paediatr Belg. 1967;21(5):407-10. 
• Gadoth N, Biedner B, Torok G. Mobius syndrome and Poland anomaly: case report and review of the literature. J Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus. 1979 Nov-Dec;16(6):374-6
• McDowell F. On the propagation, perpetuation, and parroting of erroneous eponyms such as “Poland’s Syndrome”. Plast Reconstr Surg. 1977 Apr;59(4):561-3
• Parker DL, Mitchell PR, Holmes GL. Poland-Möbius syndrome. J Med Genet. 1981 Aug;18(4):317-20. 
• Ram AN, Chung KC. Poland’s syndrome: current thoughts in the setting of a controversy. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2009 Mar;123(3):949-953.
• Seyfer AE, Fox JP, Hamilton CG. Poland syndrome: evaluation and treatment of the chest wall in 63 patients. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2010 Sep;126(3):902-911.
• Fox JP, Seyfer AE. Setting the record straight: The real history of Poland’s syndrome. 2012 Bulletin of the American College of Surgeons.
• Charlier P, Deo S, Galassi FM, Benmoussa N. Poland syndrome before Alfred Poland: the oldest medical description (Paris, France, 1803). Surg Radiol Anat. 2019 Oct;41(10):1117-1118