title: John Howship (1781-1841) and growing skull fracture: historical perspective.
abstract: In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Dr. John Howship, a pioneering British surgeon, described the clinical features and pathophysiology of various surgical disorders of the human body. His critical contributions to pediatric neurosurgery came in 1816 when he first described the features of an important childhood condition following head trauma, what he referred to as parietal bone absorption. This condition as depicted by Dr. Howship was soon to be christened by later scholars as traumatic cephalhydrocele, traumatic meningocele, leptomeningeal cyst, meningocele spuria, fibrosing osteitis, cerebrocranial erosion, and growing skull fracture. Nevertheless, the basic features of the condition as observed by Dr. Howship were virtually identical to the characteristics of the above-mentioned disorders. This article describes the life and accomplishments of Dr. Howship and his contributions to the current understanding of growing skull fracture.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, LSU Health Shreveport, Louisiana.
authors.forename: Shyamal C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Bir
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, LSU Health Shreveport, Louisiana.
authors.forename: Piyush
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kalakoti
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, LSU Health Shreveport, Louisiana.
authors.forename: Christina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Notarianni
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, LSU Health Shreveport, Louisiana.
authors.forename: Anil
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nanda
mesh_terms: D016080:Arachnoid Cysts / Q000150:complications / Q000601:surgery; D001862:Bone Resorption / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D016025:Bone Transplantation; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology; D018450:Disease Progression; D004388:Dura Mater / Q000293:injuries* / Q000473:pathology; D004677:Encephalocele / Q000145:classification / Q000209:etiology / Q000266:history* / Q000601:surgery; D013502:General Surgery / Q000266:history; D049671:History, 18th Century; D049672:History, 19th Century; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008131:London; D009144:Museums; D009493:Neurosurgery / Q000266:history*; D010294:Parietal Bone / Q000098:blood supply / Q000293:injuries* / Q000503:physiopathology; D019736:Prostheses and Implants; D019651:Plastic Surgery Procedures; D012887:Skull Fractures / Q000145:classification / Q000209:etiology / Q000266:history* / Q000601:surgery
keywords: GSF = growing skull fracture; John Howship; growing skull fracture; historical perspective