Stroke: A History of Ideas

1. The ventricles(apoplexy in the 16th century); 2. The force of blood (apoplexy in the 17th century); 3. Congestion (apoplexy in the 'long 18th century'); 4. Forgotten forms of apoplexy; 5.Haemorrhage; 6.Ramollissement; 7. Thrombosis and embolism; 8. No man's land: the neck arteries; 9. Lacunes; 10. Stroke warnings; 11. Saccular aneurysms; 12. Cerebral venous thrombosis.

Stroke, as known today, is caused by occlusion or rupture of one or more blood vessels in the brain. Its manifestations were reported as long as medical records exist; sudden collapse, loss of movement and sensation, with preserved respiration and heart action. The book chronicles how ideas about events in the brain or its blood vessels evolved over 400 years. Starting with the revival of ancient medicine in the middle of the 16th century, the narrative ends in the 20th century, when techniques for brain scanning heralded the possibility of treatment for cerebrovascular disease. The narrative is exclusively based on primary sources and shows how this part of medical knowledge evolved, including byways and blind alleys. Frequent accounts from original sources assist the reader in following how clashes of opinions led to improved understanding, making this an indispensable reference for the history of stroke research.

Jan van Gijn was Professor and Chairman of the Department of Neurology at Utrecht University Medical Centre, from 1983 to 2007. From 1996 to 2008 he was also Editor of the Dutch Journal of Medicine (Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Geneeskunde). He was Joint Chief Editor of the Journal of Neurology (1994-2001) and Associate Editor of Brain (2004-2014). He (co)authored around 400 original articles and reviews in peer-reviewed international journals, over 50 book chapters and 9 books, all mainly about cerebrovascular disease. He has been elected as a member of the Royal Dutch Academy of Arts and Sciences.