It could be argued that one of the few unifying qualities all human beings share is the ability to appreciate beauty. While the object of beauty may change from one person to another, the awe and the thrill experienced by an enthralled beholder remains the same. Sometimes, this experience can be so overwhelming it can bring someone to the edge of existence. A very rare condition, known as aesthetic syndrome and, more commonly, Stendhal syndrome, entails a clinical phenomenon in which the presence of a beautiful piece of work or architecture causes dysautonomic symptoms such as tachycardia, diaphoresis, chest pains and loss of consciousness. We present an historical and clinical review of this condition.
Désiré-Magloire Bourneville ought to be thought of as the father of Pediatric Neurology for his significant contributions to the field. He worked as a physician, politician, writer, and editor. He was the first to describe the autosomal dominant genetic condition known as “tuberous sclerosis complex”, after conducting an autopsy on a young female patient, where the main finding in the central nervous system was multiple dense tubers. The patient had refractory epilepsy and intellectual disability. His work was based on the study of epilepsy and idiocy, and he was also an advocate of public health and social medicine education; creating day hospital programs for children with this type of neurologic disease.
Epilepsy is one of the most dreaded and terrifying human afflictions. One of the many names it has received was Sacred Disease, during Greek times. Heracles served as a source of the divine connotation that epilepsy received in ancient times, as he was one of the most important demigods in Greek mythology. However, several authors have attributed Heracles’ actions to a seizure, including Hippocrates, who described the sacred disease on his “Corpus Hippocraticum.” This paper reviewed some of the publications on the myth and content of the text of Hippocrates, in relation to the current knowledge of the disease.
The Alice in Wonderland syndrome is a rare clinical neurological condition, defined by the presence of perception disorders usually interpreted by the affected patient as rare metamorphosing and depersonalization phenomena. Due to its extremely rare occurrence and its surreal and sometimes psychedelic character, the syndrome has been associated with the phenomena experienced
In Greek mythology, the god Pan represents the vital principle of both conservation and reproduction 1 . He is depicted as having a man's body down to the waist, and goat's legs and hooved feet. He also has horns, pointy ears, a beard and a tail 1 . When he was born, his mother thought he was so grotesque that she abandoned him on a mountain. Hermes (Mercury to the Romans), his father, took him to Olympus to entertain Zeus and his heavenly court 2 . Pan lived in Arcadia looking after sheep herds, helping the hunters, enjoying parties and encounters in which he drank a lot of wine and chased mortals and nymphs alike, in order to have intercourse with them. He enjoyed napping, something he did daily. What he did not forgive for any reason, was to be disturbed while he slept. Anyone who dared to wake him became prey to his dreaded persecution with tremendous cries that caused true horror and fear in the victim 1,2 . Among the numerous women he courted were mortals, gods and nymphs. The moon goddess Selene, the nymphs Echo, Eupheme and Pitys were only some of the satyr's conquests. However, we will focus on one of his most-remembered paramours, a wood nymph called Syrinx. Pan felt instantly and tremendously attracted to Syrinx, so much so that he fell in love. Pan pursued Syrinx all over including, one day, to the bank of the Ladon river.When he was just about to throw himself at her, the nymph transformed herself into hollow water reeds. The transformation rendered Pan unable to distinguish her from the other river plants. Full of woe and melancholy, the satyr cut several of the reeds he found, tied them together with wax and threads, and constructed a flute, known from that day forward as the pipes of Syrinx or a Pan flute (Figure).The tragedy of Pan and Syrinx was one of the stories that Hermes, messenger of the gods, told on his journey to rescue one of the many mortal and very beautiful lovers of Zeus, Io. Io was kidnapped by Hera, Zeus' s very resentful wife. Hera kept her under the protection of Argos, the guardian with one thousand eyes. Argos, always vigilant, was instructed by Hera not to let Zeus anywhere near Io. The king of the gods, entrusted his son Hermes with the task of rescuing his darling Io. Gently playing a Pan flute, Hermes approached Argos to tell him stories. When he told the guardian the story of the poor nymph, Syrinx, Argos closed his one thousand eyes, fell asleep and was killed by the cunning young god, which allowed the latter to rescue Io and return her to his father. The eyes of the fallen Argos were kept by Hera, and transferred onto the tail feathers of the peacock, the goddess' s favorite animal ABSTRACTMany myths and legends have had a deep influence on modern language, and on modern medical vernacular. The terms "syrinx" and "panic" are two of the most characteristic examples and their use in neurology and other specialties is well known. This article reviews the history of these words in Greek mythology and their use in modern medicine. It is known by very few that clinical sy...
CONTRIBUTION TO THE EMERGING FIELD OF GEOLOGYJames was a prolific author. His first publication dates from the year 1780 and is titled "Observations on Dr. Hugh Smith's Philosophy of Physic". His most famous book is a three-volume paleontological study called "Organic Remains of a Former World" (1804-1811). It was edited three times. His writings on medical subjects include: some accounts of the effects of lightning, a case of diseased vermiform appendix (possibly the first account of appendicitis), typhoid fever, hydrophobia, hints for the improvement of trusses, gout, and the Essay on the Shaking Palsy RESUMENEn 1817 el médico británico James Parkinson publicó un documento de 66 páginas titulado "Ensayo sobre la parálisis agitante". Este breve texto es de una gran importancia en la historia de la medicina y en particular de la neurología. Los autores desean rendir homenaje a este gran pionero de la neurología al cumplir doscientos años la publicación que inmortalizaría su nombre y que dio origen a la primera descripción de la entidad que desde 1860, a propuesta del profesor Jean Martin Charcot, el padre de la neurología, se denomina Enfermedad de Parkinson. (James -Hierons).Palabras clave: Parkinson; Charcot; historia de la medicina; neurología.
Pavlov and Cajal were two influential scientists who developed their work in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Both won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. The authors analyze the similarities between their life and work, delving into a single aspect: the Nobel prize obtained by both with only two years of difference: Pavlov in 1904 and Cajal in 1906, shared with Camilo Golgi. Both belonged to two declining empires when nationalism was still of some importance. The theories proposed by them more than 115 years ago are still valid in much of what they contributed in their respective disciplines.
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