Arthur MacNalty

rdf:langString Arthur MacNalty

rdf:langString Sir Arthur Salusbury MacNalty KCB MRCS FRCP FRCS FRSE (20 October 1880 – 11 April 1969) was the 8th Chief Medical Officer of the United Kingdom. Arthur MacNalty was also a ground breaking medical scientist. In 1908, early in his career, he joined with the Welshman Thomas Lewis (cardiologist) to demonstrate that tracings from the nascent science of electrocardiography (ECG) could be used as a tool for diagnosing Heart block. This use of electrocardiography to diagnose heart block was the earliest use of ECG technology in cardiology and clinical medicine. He was a pioneer in the modern discipline of public health and in the speciality of preventive medicine. In the 1930s, MacNalty became among the earliest public health authorities, if not the earliest, to warn against the serious medical dangers of fad dieting (slimming) and anti-obesity medications. He was particularly concerned with the neurological side effects of the popular practice of dosing with thyroid extract to lose weight. MacNalty was a prolific author of acclaimed medical and other histories, which have retained their value. He is the author of 96 books in the fields of medicine and history in 154 publications in three languages, which are held in at least 2,700 library collections.