BUERGER, LEO

BUERGER, LEO (1879–1943), U.S. physician born in Vienna, who contributed substantially to knowledge of urology, pathology, bacteriology, and the study of vascular diseases. In 1901 he became pathologist and later surgeon at Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York City. In 1930 he was appointed professor of urological surgery in Los Angeles. Buerger gave his name to "Buerger's disease" (thromboangiitis obliterans), a non-inflammatory vascular condition of the extremities which is apt to cause severe occlusion and ultimately even loss of the limb. The disease had been known from 1878 but had not been accurately described in pathological terms until Buerger did so in 1908. It is an infrequent disease and only affects males, generally in middle age. It occurs among all races, but is more common among Jews and for some time was erroneously thought to be a disease peculiar to Jews. (Joshua O. Leibowitz)