Who is Doderlein?

In M. A. Bulgakov’s novel “Notes of a young doctor”, the mention of the name Doderlein and the title of the book “Operative Obstetrics” in the text prompted searches on the shelves of our library.

In the story “Steel Throat” we read:

«…Every evening I sat in the same position, having drunk tea: under my left hand I had all the manuals on operative obstetrics, on top of a small Doderlein. And on the right there are ten different volumes on operative surgery, with drawings. I grunted, smoked, drank iced black tea…»   

Then into the “Baptism by Turning”  mentioned again:

«…Oh, Doderlein should be reading now!”I thought wistfully as I lathered my hands. Alas, it was impossible to do this now. And how would Doderlein help me at this moment?…

… I wiped my hands, the nurse threw a coat over my shoulders, and without putting it in the sleeves, I ran home. At home in the study, I lit a lamp and, forgetting to take off my hat, rushed to the bookcase…»

«…Here he is – Doderlein. “Operative obstetrics”. I hurriedly began to rustle the glossy pages…” We also look through the “little Doderlein”, which turned out to be a “Short guide to operative obstetrics»

This is a small book, which, according to the author’s idea, is intended for a novice obstetrician to help with work.  During the narration, the main character of the story, a novice doctor, really refers to this guide more than once.

«….And the pages of Doderlein flashed before my eyes. Straight turn… combined turn… indirect turn… Pages, pages… and there are drawings on them. A pelvis, twisted, squeezed babies with huge heads… a dangling handle, a loop on it…»

«…It was the beginning of the second when I returned to my room. On the desk in the office, in a spot of light from the lamp, Doderlein lay peacefully open on the page “Dangers of turning”. For another hour, swallowing cold tea, I sat over it, turning over the pages. And then an interesting thing happened: all the old dark places became completely clear, as if they were filled with light, and here, by the light of a lamp, at night, in the wilderness, I realized what real knowledge means. A lot of experience can be gained in the village, I thought, falling asleep, but you just need to read, read, read more… read…»

The author of the manual Albert Dederlein (Doderlein) (1860-1941), an outstanding German obstetrician–gynecologist, is also interesting.

In 1893 he received the title of professor, and in 1897 he took the chair of Obstetrics and Gynecology in Groningen (Holland). To mark the 300th anniversary of the University of Groning in 1914, Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands awarded Albert Dederlein the ancient Dutch title of “Doctor of Obstetric Art” (Dr. art. obstetricae H. C.) in memory of his short-term (1 year), but useful activity.

  • Since October 1898, Albert Dederlein has headed the university department in Tubing. 
  • In 1910, he headed the clinic for Women’s diseases at the Charite Hospital (Berlin).
Dederlein became famous for his work on the study of the vaginal microflora and discovered in 1887 a bacterium named after him (Dederlein’s wand). Based on the results of bacteriological studies, for the first time he introduces into practice the mandatory use of rubber gloves when performing gynecological operations, as well as during the examination of women in labor and maternity hospitals.

He is credited with the development of new surgical methods in obstetrics and gynecology, the use of a mixture of nitrogen and oxygen to eliminate pain during childbirth. He possessed an amazing art of individual labor management. With the advent of the “X-ray and radiation era”, he became a pioneer in the treatment of uterine cancer by radiation therapy methods. 

During operations, A. Dederlein often demonstrated phenomenal surgical abilities. He operated with ease and elegance. Without striving for speed of operation, he was able to concentrate on time, so his operations, regardless of the degree of complexity, were never protracted. Absolutely everything, from beginning to end, was thought out and not a single unnecessary movement, not a single wasted word disturbed the smooth course of the operation.

Albert Dederlein created a large school of obstetricians and gynecologists, left a significant scientific and literary legacy; many of his manuals and monographs were re-published, some were translated into Russian.

The professor had a unique oratorical gift. He always delighted everyone with his logically constructed and skillfully delivered lectures. His style of speech and his voice were constantly changing depending on the content of the lecture.The merit of A. Dederlein is also that he used the demonstration of films for the first time during a lecture.

Sources of information:

Dederlein, Albert (1860-1941). A brief guide to operative obstetrics / Prof. Albert Doderlein, dirUniv. feminine. clinics in Munich ; Trans. from the last. (14/15) ed. by Dr. R. O. Kogan-Bernstein. – Berlin : Doctor, 1923. – VIII, 224 p.: ill.; 19 cm.

Lyatoshinskaya, P. V. Albert Döderlein (1860-1942). From vaginal bacillus to radiation therapy / P. V. Lyatoshinskaya, Yu. V. Tsvelev, V. F. Refugee. – Text: direct // Journal of Obstetrics and women’s diseases : a peer-reviewed scientific and practical journal. – 2008. – Volume 57, N 2. – pp. 146-151.

*The material was prepared by Bulakhova O.I.