Resumo

SALAVERRY, Oswaldo. La piedra de la locura: inicios históricos de la salud mental. Rev. perú. med. exp. salud publica, mar. 2012, vol.29, no.1, p.143-148. ISSN 1726-4634.

Addressing the relatively recent concern of public health in the issue of mental health problems, the evolution of the concept of mental illness in the occidental pre-modern history is revised, as well as the reasons why it remained outside the mainstream of the professional healing activity. The differences between the naturalist and the supernatural views are explored as well

Palavras-chave: Mental health; History of medicine; Public health.