Weir Mitchell's 1859 demonstration of "a peculiar contraction" produced by a percussion hammer.
BACKGROUND
The 1875 publications of Erb and Westphal brought widespread attention to the percussion of muscle stretch reflexes. Although the maneuver may have been observed before 1875, there is little concrete evidence of this.


OBJECTIVE
To bring to light an early report of percussion eliciting the muscle stretch response.


METHODS
While studying the Weir Mitchell papers (Philadelphia College of Physicians), the author came across an early report of the maneuver.


RESULTS
The 531-word 1859 report, published in the Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, was written by a pro tem reporter who observed Mitchell's demonstration of the phenomenon. The other attendees, including Dr. William Hammond, were so well aware of the phenomena that Dr. Mitchell "did not consider it necessary to describe them more fully." Mitchell viewed the response as muscular in nature and the relationship between this response and disease was not explored in the report.


CONCLUSIONS
This 1859 report preceded the Erb and Westphal publications by nearly two decades. It is perhaps the first concrete proof that neurologists were observing this phenomenon as early as the mid-1800s. Mitchell viewed the phenomenon as a local muscle response. While the concepts that later allowed Erb to correctly interpret the phenomenon as a reflex arc were already in place, Mitchell did not synthesize these concepts.
Louis
Elan D
ED
G.H. Sergievsky Center, Department of Neurology, Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer's Disease and the Aging Brain, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA. EDL2@columbia.edu
D000818:Animals; D049672:History, 19th Century; D006801:Humans; D009119:Muscle Contraction / Q000502:physiology; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000294:innervation / Q000502:physiology; D009460:Neurologic Examination / Q000266:history / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D009462:Neurology / Q000266:history* / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D009482:Neurophysiology / Q000266:history* / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D010474:Percussion / Q000266:history / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D010506:Periodicals as Topic / Q000266:history*; D012026:Reflex, Stretch / Q000502:physiology*; D012955:Societies, Medical / Q000266:history; D014481:United States