Icono-diagnosis: a challange between medicine and art

Abstract

The representation of human body in paintings and sculptures can be analysed with a medical look in order to find out any kind of diagnosable disease. This activity has been designed as icono-diagnosis. Many types of genetic and acquired medical conditions have been diagnosed in fine art works by several authors and recorded in the medical literature. The present report illustrates some examples and, tentatively, classifies main pathologic conditions in art representations.