Richard Morton (physician)

Richard Morton (1637 – 1698) was an English physician, known for his pioneering work in the early descriptions of tuberculosis and anorexia nervosa.

Born in Worcestershire, England, Morton studied at Christ Church, Oxford, receiving his Bachelor of Arts in 1656 and Master of Arts in 1659. He subsequently earned his medical doctorate from Oxford in 1664. He practiced medicine in London, becoming a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians in 1679.

Morton's most significant contributions were in the field of pulmonary medicine. His book, Phthisiologia: seu exercitationes de originiali phthisi (1689), offered a comprehensive description of pulmonary tuberculosis, making him one of the first to systematically describe the disease. While his understanding of its cause was still based on Galenic humoral theory, his detailed observations of its symptoms and progression were influential.

He is also credited with providing one of the earliest clinical descriptions of anorexia nervosa. In his Phthisiologia, he detailed two cases of "nervous consumption" affecting young individuals displaying symptoms now associated with the eating disorder. The first case involved a Mr. Duke's son and the second case focused on Miss Mary Poole. Morton distinguished this condition from other wasting diseases, recognizing its psychological component and association with emotional distress.

Richard Morton's work, though rooted in the medical understanding of his time, laid important groundwork for future advancements in the diagnosis and understanding of both tuberculosis and anorexia nervosa. His detailed clinical observations and clear writing style ensured his work had a lasting impact on medical knowledge.