Medical milestones, landmark publications, and notable births and deaths associated with December 29.

Events

1807 – Gaspard Vieusseux (1746-1814) suffered a stroke. He described ipsilateral facial numbness, contralateral sensory loss in the limbs, dysphagia, hoarseness, hiccups, tongue weakness, and ptosis of the eyelid before the Société médico-chirurgicale de Genève in 1808. One of the earliest clinical descriptions of lateral medullary syndrome (Wallenberg syndrome), based on his own illness.

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Births

1816 – Carl Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig (1816-1895), German physician. Invented the kymograph (1847) allowing graphical recording of physiological events.

1863 – Wilhelm His Jr. (1863–1934), Swiss cardiologist; described the Bundle of His (1893), Werner-His disease (1916), and coined the term ‘heart block’ (1893)

1999 – Robert Alvin Berman (1914-1999), American anesthesiologist; invented the Berman Airway (1949), Berman Resuscitube (1952), Berman Quik Cuff (1956), Berman Intubating Airway (1978)

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Deaths

1689 – Thomas Sydenham (1624-1689), English physician; described Sydenham’s chorea (1686)

1919 – Sir William Osler (1849-1919), Canadian born, British physician; described Osler nodules, Osler Sign I (1898), Oslerus osleri (1877), Vaquez-Osler disease, Rendu-Osler-Weber disease

1958 – Oskar Kreis (1872–1958), Swiss obstetrician–gynaecologist; described spinal (subarachnoid) cocaine analgesia for labour (1900)

1965 – Sir Gordon Morgan Holmes (1876-1965), Irish neurologist; described Holmes-Adie syndrome (1931), Stewart-Holmes Sign (1904), Gordon Holmes syndrome (1908), Bálint-Holmes syndrome (1909, 1918), and Head-Holmes syndrome (1911)

1987 – Anton Jervell (1901-1987), Norwegian cardiologist; described Jervell and Lange-Nielsen syndrome (JLNS) (1957)

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Further reading

• Hong L. Wallenberg Syndrome. LITFL