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A Pioneer in the History of Aphasia

Francois Boller, MD

Arch Neurol. 1977;34(5):306-307.

Abstract
• Wernicke is usually credited with the first significant description of comprehension disorders in aphasia. Before Wernicke, however, others had reported patients with impaired comprehension. This communication deals with one of those pioneer papers, that written by Schmidt, an obstetrician, in 1871. It concerns a 25-year-old woman who developed sudden language difficulty ten days after delivery. She had trouble understanding oral or written language. Through careful examination, Schmidt showed that she was neither deaf nor psychotic. He concludes his paper with a prediction of the area of the brain he suspected to be involved. Schmidt's paper represents an early, noteworthy effort to clarify the relations between brain and behavior.

Author Affiliations
From the Neurobehavior Unit, Cleveland Veterans Administration Hospital and Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland.

Footnotes
Accepted for publication Jan 18, 1977.

Reprint requests to Neurobehavior Unit, Veterans Administration Hospital, Cleveland, OH 44106 (Dr Boller).

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