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George K. York, MD; David A. Steinberg, MD

Arch Neurol. 1998;55:571-572.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

INTRODUCTION

ON NOVEMBER 11, 1918, an armistice ended the Great War. No single battle proved decisive; rather, economic and social fatigue overcame the German will to continue. Mechanized warfare on a global scale led to permanent political, social, medical, and scientific dislocations. Neurology was there.

NEUROLOGICAL STUDIES

The advent of large-scale modern warfare provided neurologists with an unmatched, if unwanted, opportunity. Technological advances in the treatment of shock and the prevention of infection meant that many more people survived war wounds. Neurologists made use of this gruesome natural experiment to learn the impact that bullets, bombs, and shrapnel had on the human nervous system. For example, Gordon Holmes¹ described the symptoms of acute cerebellar injury based on his observations of wounded soldiers.

Trench warfare generated a large number of soldiers with unexplained tremor, mutism, blindness, paraplegia, and amnesia, known collectively as shell shock. The . . . [Full Text of this Article]

NEUROLOGICAL MEETINGS

NEUROLOGICAL EDUCATION

MAJOR PUBLICATIONS

NEW NEUROLOGICAL ORIENTATIONS

From the Department of Neurology, Kaiser Stockton Medical Center, Stockton, Calif (Dr York); and The Såa Institute, Fiddletown, Calif (Drs York and Steinberg).