All posts by Anders Ottosson

Anders Ottosson is a historian and senior fellow and at the Department of Historical Studies, University of Gothenburg, Sweden. He also has a background as a physiotherapist. His main field of scholarly interest is in the history of medicine and professionalisation of healthcare. He has published widely on the history of physiotherapy, orthopaedics and physical education

Physiotherapy at the Royal Gymnastics Central Institute in Stockholm, c 1900. Wikimedia Commons.

Her story

In the late 19th century, the medical world was turbulent, competitive, and surprisingly entrepreneurial. Among the more transformative developments was the rise of mechanical medicine—manual techniques, movement therapies, and massage—that challenged the conventional drug-based treatments  (pharmacology) of so-called orthodox or regular medicine. While attention has been paid to the professionalisation

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