The history of neuromyelitis optica

Abstract

The discovery of a novel serum autoantibody (termed NMO-IgG or AQP4-Ab) in a subset of patients in 2004 has revived interest in neuromyelitis optica (NMO). While the history of classical multiple sclerosis has been extensively studied, only little is known about the history of NMO. In the present article, we provide a comprehensive review of the early history of this rare but intriguing syndrome. We trace the origins of the concept of NMO in the 19th century medical literature and follow its evolution throughout the 20th and into the 21st century. Finally, we discuss recent proposals to revise the concept of NMO and explain why there is indeed a need for a more systematic and descriptive nomenclature.

Figure 1

Eugène Devic (1858–1930).

Figure 2

Heading and first paragraph of Eugène Devic’s famous abstract for the Congrès Français de Médecine in Lyon in 1894.

Figure 3

Title page of Fernand Gault’s doctoral thesis De la neuromyélite optique aiguë (Lyon, November 1894).

Figure 4

Peppo Acchioté (1870–1916).

Figure 5

Title page of the third volume of Johann Valentin Hildenbrand’s Institutiones practico-medicae (Vienna, 1822; published posthumously).