Gilles de la Tourette Syndrome

Abstract

This chapter opens with a summary of Gilles de la Tourette syndrome as it is currently understood, then presents the lesson given by Gilles de la Tourette in 1899 on the subject. This lesson is indicative of the necessary perspicacity for isolating the pathology from “the choreas,” a catch-all term in Gilles de la Tourette’s day for abnormal movements. Initiated by the translation of an article by the American alienist Beard describing the “Jumpers of Maine,” Gilles de la Tourette’s work can be situated along a timeline that included errors and missing elements up to its publication in 1885. Also highlighted are Charcot’s role in this nosographical study, as well as the hidden contribution of Georges Guinon. The reception by European and American neurologists of this entity’s isolation concludes the analysis of this seminal work, which led to the now-famous eponym.