June 4 – On This Day in Medical History

Medical milestones, landmark publications, and notable births and deaths associated with June 4.

Events

1906 – James Ramsay Hunt (1874-1937) presented to the American Neurological Association his description of herpes zoster oticus involving the geniculate ganglion, linking it to ipsilateral peripheral facial palsy (Ramsay Hunt syndrome). He published the full account in 1907.

Herpes Auricularis with Facial Palsy. — In this manifestation of the affection, there is superadded to the herpes auricularis, as just described a peripheral facial palsy, which appears on the same side as the zoster.

Ramsay Hunt, 1907

Births

1867 – John Henry Bryant (1867-1906), English physician; described the Blue Scrotum Sign of Bryant (1903)


Deaths

1839 – Friedrich Ludwig Kreysig (1779-1839), German physician and botanist; described the Heim-Kreysig sign (1816)

1858 – John Addison Fordyce (1858 –1925), American dermatologist; described Fox–Fordyce disease (1902) [aka Apocrine miliaria], Fordyce spots (Fordyce disease), and Fordyce lesion (Angiokeratoma of the scrotum)

1922 – William Halse Rivers Rivers (1864-1922), English psychiatrist, neurologist, anthropologist and polymath; remembered for his research into protopathic and epicritic Sensation, mapping of dermatomes, and his shell shock and abreaction therapy

1938 – Ferdinand-Jean Darier (1856-1938), Hungarian born, French dermatologist; described Darier disease [maladie de Darier], Darier syndrome (1889), Darier sign, Darier–Roussy sarcoid (1904), and Darier-Ferrand sarcoid (1924)

2001 — François Dessertenne (1917-2001), French cardiologist; coined the term torsades de pointes (1966)


Further reading

BA MA (Oxon) MBChB (Edin) FACEM FFSEM. Emergency physician, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. Passion for rugby, medical history, medical education, and asynchronous learning #FOAMed evangelist. Editor-in-Chief and Webmaster of Life in the Fast lane, LITFL | On Call 4e| Eponyms | Books | Horology |