Diseases of Workers

work by Ramazzini

Also known as: “De Morbis Artificum Diatriba”

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June 25, 2026

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Bernardino Ramazzini, an Italian physician, is considered the father of occupational medicine. He authored De Morbis Artificum Diatriba (1700), translated as Diseases of Workers, the first comprehensive work on health issues related to employment.123

Ramazzini's work detailed the hazards faced by workers in various occupations, describing the health risks associated with chemicals, dust, and metals encountered in 52 different jobs. He emphasized that understanding a patient's occupation was crucial for diagnosing their ailments. This groundbreaking research laid the foundation for the study of how work environments impact health.231

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Bernardino Ramazzini
…De Morbis Artificum Diatriba (1760; Diseases of Workers), the first comprehensive work on occupational diseases, outlining the health hazards of irritating chemicals, dust, metals, and other abrasive agents encountered by workers in 52 occupations. He served as professor of medicine at the University of Padua from 1700 until his death.
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…De Morbis Artificum Diatriba (1760; Diseases of Workers), the first comprehensive work on occupational diseases, outlining the health hazards of irritating chemicals, dust, metals, and other abrasive agents encountered by workers in 52 occupations. He served as professor of medicine at the University of Padua from 1700 until his death.
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occupational disease
The preindustrial era
…De Morbis Artificum Diatriba (1700; Diseases of Workers) contains descriptions of the diseases associated with 54 different occupations, from the mercury poisoning of Venetian mirror makers to the diseases afflicting learned men. Ramazzini believed that a physician must determine the patient’s occupation in order to discover the cause of the…
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…De Morbis Artificum Diatriba (1700; Diseases of Workers) contains descriptions of the diseases associated with 54 different occupations, from the mercury poisoning of Venetian mirror makers to the diseases afflicting learned men. Ramazzini believed that a physician must determine the patient’s occupation in order to discover the cause of the…
Read More