Gregory House is named and characterized as a parallel to Sherlock Holmes in House M.D. The connection is built into the show’s central character and its approach to solving mysteries.
Both figures rely on observation, deduction, and unusual methods to solve cases that defeat conventional investigators. House’s surname echoes Holmes’s, and his friend James Wilson occupies a role comparable to Dr. John Watson. The show also includes further allusions, including House’s apartment number and aspects of the characters’ habits.
House is not a direct adaptation of a particular Holmes story. Instead, the series transfers the detective’s investigative structure into a hospital setting. Other fictional detectives may seem plausible because House solves puzzles, but Sherlock Holmes is the specific literary model repeatedly identified by the series’ creators and reference material.