EARLY AMERICAN NEUROLOGIC TEXTBOOKS

Although European treatises were translated and available to American doctors interested in neurology during the 19th century, the early Ame rican neurologic textbooks were distinctive in their comprehensive int egration of basic and clinical science. William A. Hammond, in 1871, p ublished the first comprehensive American textbook of neurology, prece ding the manuals by Gowers (1886) and Oppenheim (1894) by more than a decade. Four other American adult neurologic textbooks expanded on Ham mond's model and incorporated other important topics, including neurol ogic anatomy, the formal examination, neurochemistry, and complete bib liographies. Bernard Sachs' 1895 textbook was the first pediatric neur ologic textbook published in America and made significant contribution s to the organization of childhood neurologic disorders. These works f unctioned as centralized resources for neurologic information, were in fluential educational tools, and helped foster a growing appreciation of the American neurologic school both nationally and internationally.