What do we know about the medical biography of Kemal Atatürk (1881–1938)? A summary of the state of knowledge and outlook on relevant issues for further research

Abstract

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder and first President of the Turkish republic, is the subject of many more or less ‘heroic’ biographies and few critical ones. His anamnesis, however, is only available in fragments. Many books omit details of Atatürk’s health and life, for example his bloodline, his illness and eventually his death, his funeral prayer and ceremony and his burial. His liver problem, diagnosed as cirrhosis and said to be the cause of his death, is well described but his general health and other sicknesses are scarcely recorded. This paper provides an overview of his anamnesis as far as it is known, the literature describing it and the level of knowledge generally published, and it also indicates where original research in the archives is needed to complete the picture.