In 1874 he visited Great Britain and the United States. In 1881 he became an assistant professor of surgery at the University of Bonn, followed by professorships at Rostock (from 1882) and Strasbourg (from 1894). After the French takeover of Strasbourg following World War I, Madelung was relieved of his duties, and he subsequently retired to Göttingen, where he died.
Madelung also described a benign form of lipomatosis, characterized by symmetrical deposits of adipose tissue in the area of the neck, shoulder girdle, arms, and upper trunk of the body. Today, this disorder goes by several names, including "benign symmetric lipomatosis", "Madelung's syndrome", and "multiple symmetric lipomatosis". If the condition is confined to the neck, it is sometimes referred to by the eponym "Madelung's neck".
Die spontane Subluxation der Hand nach Vorne. Verhandlungen der deutschen Gesellschaft für Chirurgie, Berlin, 1878; 7: 259–276. Madelung's deformity explained.
Zur Erleichterung der Sehnennaht. Centralblatt für Chirurgie, Leipzig, 1882.
Das Stadt-Krankenhaus in Rostock. In: Julius Uffelmann (1837–1894): Hygienische Topographie der Stadt Rostock. Rostock, 1889.[1]