Ewolucja poglÄ dów na temat etiologii i leczenia krzywicy

The first precise descriptions of rickets' symptoms appeared in 17th century (Whistler, Glisson). At the turn of 19th and 20th centuries different hypothesis and theories on the origin of rickets were made: environmental, hereditary, nutritional, racial, geographical and climatic, endocrine and biochemical. The beginnings of rational etiology and rickets treatment are connected to the discovery of vitamin D and the influence of sun rays on its synthesis within the human body (20th century). Significant part in determining the essence of the disease played observations, experiments and discoveries made by Polish scientists: Jędrzej Śniadecki, Kazimierz Funk and Jan Raczyński.