Akbar Mahomed (1849-1882) was a physician at Guy’s who applied a cumbersome and inaccurate sphygmograph to the evaluation of the pulse wave, and so indirectly to assess blood pressure. He was the first to note that many people with high blood pressure were apparently well, and that blood pressure increased with age. He also addressed the conundrum ‘Does kidney disease cause vascular disease, or vice versa?’ – by recognising that either was possible.
See also a presentation given by Stewart Cameron in 2015 on 19th century UK nephrology
Cameron JS. The description of essential hypertension by Frederick Akhbar Mahomed. Nephrol Dial Transplant. 1995;10(7):1244-7.
Cameron JS, Hicks J. Frederick Akbar Mahomed and his role in the description of hypertension at Guy’s Hospital. Kidney Int. 1996 May;49(5):1488-1506.
Last Updated on January 7, 2025 by neilturn