Jacob Mendes Da Costa, M.D.   View the book by Dr. Da Costa in this collection   Name: Jacob M. DaCosta Cause of death: heart disease Death date: Sep 11, 1900 Place of death: Villa Nova, PA Birth date: 1833 Place of birth: St. Thomas, West Indies Type of practice: Allopath Practice specialities: CD Cardiovascular Diseases, PUD Pulmonary Diseases States and years of licenses: PA, 1881 Places and dates of practices: Philadelphia, PA Hospital affiliations: Episcopal Hospital, Philadelphia Hospital, Pennsylvania Hospital Medical school(s): Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, 1852, (G) Other education: Paris, Vienna Professorship: Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, 1872, theory, practice of medicine Journal of the American Medical Association Citation: 35:703   (1833-1900) Jefferson Medical College Class of 1852 Jacob Mendes Da Costa's research, writings, and teaching were influential in the development of internal medicine as a specialty. However, his greatest contribution to American medicine lay in his clinical instruction at various Philadelphia institutions. Born 7 February 1833 on the Island of St. Thomas in the West Indies, Jacob Mendes Da Costa received his early education in Dresden, Germany, before coming to Jefferson Medical College. A graduate of the class of 1852, Da Costa received postgraduate education in Europe - mainly Paris but also Vienna. Upon his return from Europe, Da Costa began his practice in Philadelphia and his private teaching at the Moyamensing Dispensary (1853-1861). During the Civil War, Da Costa served as assistant surgeon in the U.S. Army and at Turner's Lane Hospital, Philadelphia. Here, he undertook research on "irritable heart" (neurocirculatory asthenia) in soldiers, research that was of landmark importance in clinical medicine. After the Civil War, Da Costa continued his teaching at the Pennsylvania Hospital (1865-1900). He began at Jefferson Medical College as a lecturer on clinical medicine (1866-1872), then professor of theory and practice of medicine (1872-1891), and finally professor emeritus (1891-1900). While Da Costa retired in 1891, he continued his medical efforts as a consultant and supporter for medical education reform and served as a trustee of the University of Pennsylvania in 1899. ( From: Jeffline: TJU Archives.) From: Virtualology DA COSTA, Jacob M., physician, born in the Island of St. Thomas, West Indies, 7 February 1833. His literary and classical education was received in Germany, his medical in Jefferson College, Philadelphia, where he was graduated in 1852, and in the hospitals and schools of Paris and Vienna, where he passed two years. In 1854 he returned to Philadelphia, established himself there in practice, and made a special study of diseases of the heart and lungs. In 1864 he was appointed lecturer on clinical medicine in Jefferson medical College, and in the spring of 1872 was chosen professor of the theory and practice of medicine in the same institution. His contributions to medical literature include "Epithelial Tumors and Cancers of the Skin" (1852); "An Inquiry into the Pathological Anatomy of Acute Pneumonia" (1855); "The Physicians of the Last Century" (1857); "On Serous Apoplexy" (1859); "Medical Diagnosis, with Special Reference to Practical Medicine" (1864); and "Inhalation in the Treatment of Diseases of the Respiratory Passages" (1867). He has also contributed many articles to the "Pennsylvania Hospital Reports," in the" American Journal of the Medical Sciences," and his clinical lectures have appeared in the "Medical and Surgical Reporter" and the "Philadelphia Medical Times." Edited Appletons Encyclopedia, Copyright © 2001 VirtualologyTM Da Costa's photo is in the composite Jefferson Medical  College faculty CDV below, top center.