Dr. Manuel P. Colmenares and scientific medicine during the Porfiriato (1873-1928)

Abstract

Dr. Manuel P. Colmenares was one of several Mexican physicians whose work in the final thirty years of the 19th century contributed significantly, though quietly, to the construction of scientific medicine in Mexico. That period was the heyday of clinical medicine in the country, during which the field adopted a hegemonic model that was not adverse to progress or to admitting new medical knowledge being generated around the world. This study introduces a virtually unknown Mexican physician whose interests, in keeping with the style of 19th-century medical science, were diverse. The essay focuses on his work in neurology, ophthalmology and public health, but also presents information on his life and family, some members of which were active participants in significant political events in their home state of Oaxaca.