www.whonamedit.com

Following on from this month's education article Beyond the name (p276), have you ever wondered who Robert Graves was? Or maybe James Paget caught your interest? Even if you're not that curious, here's a chance to find out all about them, and more. www.whonamedit.com is a biographical dictionary of over 6000 medical eponyms (people after whom something is named). Compiled by a Norwegian group, the site aims to ultimately provide a comprehensive collection of 15 000 eponyms, and is consequently growing rapidly.

The home page is impressive, has a convenient layout, and details ways to search the dictionary effectively. Quick searches are available for the more seasoned user, or you can use various search parameters—one of the site's strong points. Searches can be based on country, sex, letter of the alphabet, and also an extensive list of categories of disease, which includes topics from amyloid to vitamins. Names of any medical condition, sign or symptom can also be used as key words, and a list of eponymous syndromes associated with them can be generated.

The results of searches are usually lists of entries which best correspond to the inquiry. The first two or three relate specifically to the name, highlighting biographical details and important achievements—sometimes a lengthy read. However, search results are not always as you would expect, and you should probably search through a couple of parameters to get the best results. Other results link to other diseases or names in which the search query comes up. So, for example, if you search for “Graves” you will also get results about “von Basedow.”

Most biographical information is extensively referenced, although definitions and descriptions of diseases may not be. By the site's own admission, some entries are incomplete and users are asked to give missing information, should they know it. Most well known conditions are complete and extensively referenced, however.

If you are particularly interested, the site is regularly updated, and the latest new entries and the number of eponyms are listed. www.whonamedit.com is a good resource for those long essays which demand some historical rhetoric. The site is also great for impressing those consultants of the old school. But if nothing else, reading and learning about some of the greatest doctors of our time is wonderful.