Apraxia and beyond: life and work of Hugo Liepmann.
Nearly 100 years after their publication Hugo Liepmann's ideas are still influential for today's neuropsychology. This influence is, however, restricted to a small, albeit central, portion of his work. Cognizance of their wider biographical and scientific context may help to bring about a deeper understanding of their significance. This paper provides a comprehensive review of Liepmann's life and work. In the first part of this paper I try to give an impression of his life, his personality and his style as a clinician and as a scientific writer. The second part is a review of his ideas on cerebral localization of psychological function, and the third an account of his writings on apraxia. Finally, I briefly consider Liepmann's legacy and argue that the less well known parts of his writings are at least as topical today as are his famous papers on apraxia.
Goldenberg
Georg
G
Neuropsychological Department, Krankenhaus München Bogenhausen, München, Germany. Georg.Goldenberg@extern.lrz-muenchen.de
D001072:Apraxias / Q000145:classification / Q000266:history* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D004292:Dominance, Cerebral; D005858:Germany; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D009434:Neural Pathways; D009488:Neurosciences / Q000266:history