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The History of Neurosurgery
at
Massachusetts General Hospital
Harvard Medical SchoolThis
is an illustration of the Bulfinch Building, the first home of the Massachusetts
General Hospital, which opened in 1823.
| [Used with
Permission - from an original ink wash and watercolor lithograph by Robert J.
Leanna II.] | The operating
room of the hospital, now known as the Ether Dome, is visible in the center of
the building's top floor. In this operating
theater general anesthesia for surgery was demonstrated to the world's medical
community
for the first time. This
illustration is from the cover of the Journal
of Neurosurgery (vol 79, 1993) and Dr Barker's
publication on
"The
Massachusetts General Hospital. Early history
and neurosurgery to 1939"
below. |
![[MGH Neurosurgical Service]](/images/NShome2.JPG) |
As you have seen, we use the symbol of the Bulfinch
Building as a link to our MGH
Neurosurgery main web system and the logo for the MGH
Neurosurgical Service.
| The East and
West Neurosurgical Services are named after the wings of the Bulfinch building.
The South Surgical Service also dates to the time of Harvey Cushing's House
Pupilship (internship) at MGH. | | |
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Department
of Neurological Surgery, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pennsylvania. The
early history of the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) is reviewed with emphasis
on the development of neurological surgery. The hospital opened in 1823. Early
trephinations were performed by Dr. John Collins Warren and others for treatment
of trauma and epilepsy. In the 1880's, interest in brain surgery increased, and
Dr. John Elliot performed several trephinations for brain tumors, three of which
were witnessed by Dr. Harvey Cushing during his years at the MGH as medical student
and intern. In 1911, all brain surgery was placed in the hands of Dr. S. J. Mixter.
He later shared the assignment with his son, Dr. W. J. Mixter, who described herniation
of the intervertebral disc with Dr. J. S. Barr and became the first Chief of the
Neurosurgical Service at MGH in 1939. [
Abstract
- Neurosurg 1993 Dec;79(6):948-959 ]
[ PDF
copy of the Article from The Journal of Neurosurgery ] The
Massachusetts General Hospital. The Sequel.
by Dr Nicholas
T. Zervas, M.D. Department
of Neurosurgery, Massachusetts General Hospital,
Boston Massachusetts Since
the 1930's, the residents and fellows.... [
Abstract
- Neurosurg 1993 Dec;79(6):948-959 ]
[ PDF
copy of the Article from The Journal of Neurosurgery ]
Outline of the
history of neurosurgery at MGH Two major
branches of American neurosurgery could be said to have passed from Victor Horsley
via John W. Eliot at M.G.H.. The first was Harvey Cushing and the American school
of neurosurgery for intracranial tumors. The second passed to Samuel J. Mixter
and his son William Jason Mixter and concentrated on functional and spinal neurosurgery:
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Harvey Cushing (far left) in 1895 during
his House Pupilship (internship) at Massachusetts General Hospital.
- Harvey Cushing spends his year (1895-6) as a House
Pupil at M.G.H. where he participates in a number of neurosurgical cases with
Elliot. He also introduces the monitoring of blood pressure and heart rate during
anesthesia (Ether Charts).
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Samuel J. Mixter, MD
- Special Assignment
in the Surgery of the Central Nervous System, 1911-1917
- The
first successful surgical stabilization of atlantoaxial (C1-C2) instability (Mixter
and Osgood Ann Surg 51:193-207, 1910).
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William
Jason Mixter, MD - Takes
over the Special Assignment in 1917 and is appointed first Chief of the MGH Neurosurgical
Service, 1933-1946.
- A founder of minimally
invasive neurosurgery, Dr. Mixter was the first to successfully treat hydrocephalus
with endoscopic third ventriculostomy. (Boston Med. Surg. J. 188:277-8,
1923)
- Publishes seminal paper on the
discovery of herniated intervertebral disks as
a cause of pathology in 1933.
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James Clarke White, MD
- Chief of the Neurosurgical Service 1941-1961 (W.J.
Mixter served as acting chief from 1941 to 1946 while Dr. White served in the
Navy.) Contributions to the neurosurgical treatment of pain and spine neurosurgery.
- First (with Drs Lougheed
and Sweet) to use hypothermia for neuroprotection during surgery. (J. Neurosurg
12:240-255, 1955)
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William H. Sweet, MD, D.Sc.
- Chief of the Neurosurgical
Service 1961-1977.
- Co-inventor (with
MGH's Gordon Brownell) of positron emission tomography (PET
Scanning, Nucleonics 11:40-45, 1953)
- Originator
and major proponent of Boron Neutron Capture Therapy for brain tumors (J. Neurosurg
9: 200-209, 1952)
- Developed
the most frequently used procedure for the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia (radiofrequency
lesioning of the trigeminal ganglion. J Neurosurg 40:143-156, 1974).
- Performed one of the first successful
carotid bifurcation reconstructions (with Drs. Hamlin and Lougheed) on June 11,
1953 (J Neurosurg 15:427-437).
| Other
selected MGH and MGH-neurosurgical-service alumni contributions to Neurosurgery
- The identification by C. Miller Fisher
(of the MGH Neurology Service) that carotid bifurcation occlusive disease is
the major preventable cause of stroke and transient ischemic attack. (Arch
Neurol Psychiat 65:346-377, 1951 and Arch Neurol Psychiat 72:187-204,
1954).
- A history
of radiosurgery with emphasis on early introduction of particle beams at MGH
- The introduction of the operating
microscope into neurosurgery (while at U Vermont): R.
M. Peardon Donaghy , MD, D.Sc., F.A.C.S.
- Hakim's
Disease : Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus
- Introduction
of osmotic diruetics for reduction of intracranial pressure: Manucher Javid
(while at U Wisconsin), Surg Clin North Am pp.907-028, 1958.
- Discovery
of the anticonvulsant properties of diphenylhydantoin . Tracy Putnam (while
at Boston City Hospital) and H. Houston Merritt, Science 85:525-526,
1937.
- Introduction of endovascular
surgery for arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) and aneurysms: Alfred J. Luessenhop
(while at Georgetown University) and A. C. Velasquez J. Neurosurg 21:85-91,
1964.
For
more information see: - The Massachusetts
General Hospital: Early History and Neurosurgery
to 1939 by Fred G. Barker II from Journal of Neurosurgery 79: 948-958,
1993. Copyright American Association of Neurological Surgeons.
- The
Massachusetts General Hospital: The Sequel by
Nicholas T. Zervas , MD from Journal of Neurosurgery
79:959-959, 1993. Copyright American Association of Neurological Surgeons.
- Neurosurgery at the Massachusetts
General Hospital 1909-1983: A short History and Alumni Record, edited by Nicholas
T. Zervas and the Neurosurgical Staff, Copyright Massachusetts General Hospital,
1984.
- A
History of Radiosurgery
- The MGH
Residents and Fellows Homepage (including links to alumni homepages).
Other
Online medical history resources |
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![[Neurosurgery Rounds]](/images/rounds2.JPG)
![[Divider]](../images/barrule.gif){kind=small}
