A ICAL MEDICAL diagnosis of Adolf Hitler is presented: giant cell arteritis—temporal arteritis. It is based on findings of attacks of temporal headaches, tenderness of the temporal and supraorbital regions, an enlarged temporal artery, visual loss in the right eye, low-grade fever, weight loss, normochromic anemia, and an elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate. The likelihood of this diagnosis and its relationship to Hitler's cardiological, gastrointestinal, hepatic, dermatological, ophthalmological, and neurological symptoms is discussed.
In 1975, I embarked on a psychiatric and medical study of Hitler. During the course of this study, I acquainted myself with the numerous biographical works; examined thousands of references in the National Archives of Washington, DC, Germany, and Austria; and interviewed persons who knew Hitler. The result of this study will be presented in a forthcoming book to be published by Oxford University Press Inc, New York, NY. In this article, I am concerned exclusively with a