The man behind the syndrome: Argyll Robertson,Scotland's ambassador extraordinary in the realm of ophthalmology

Abstract

The aim of this study is to find out whether bromide was able to cause conversion of epilepsy to psychosis i.e., so‐called paradoxical normalization such as has been seen in treatment with modern antiepileptic drugs. Spontaneous conversion has been known for three hundred years. Locock introduced bromide in the treatment of epilepsy in 1857. Belgrave wrote in 1868 on its effect on epileptic attacks and concommitant insanity. In 1868 Holm observed reduction of the frequency of seizures at the same time as psychotic symptoms or just dysphoria. In 1875 Voisin described a dose‐dependent intoxication with psychosis and/or neurological signs. Stark in 1875 and Bannister in 1881 were the first to clearly describe the antagonism between epileptic seizures and psychotic symptoms, an antagonism or conversion described by many authors, both in cases with high and low dosage, and with and without intoxication. Thus, the title of this paper should be answered in the affirmative.

Bromide has been used as a sedative and has rarely caused intoxication. Thus the presence of epilepsy is not a condition for the development of bromide intoxication. A case with epilepsy and fatal massive bromide intoxication is reported. It is discussed whether the pathological findings give support to Wolf's hypothesis of latent epileptic activity in subcortical pathways during “normalization”;.     

Zu monumentum ancyranum

Like many of his contemporaries, Montaigne quotes abundantly from classical sources. But unlike most sixteenth-century writers, he does not use his quotations primarily as a source of authority or as rhetorical ornament. He deploys them in such a way as to make his readers take note not only of the quotation itself but also of its original context. He thus engages in a much deeper and more complex dialogue with his sources, one which may be regarded as a form of cross-cultural communication. As such, his quotation practice illustrates a fundamental (but often overlooked) feature of human communication: a great part of the information transmitted through an utterance or a text is communicated implicitly.1 This article is based upon a paper given at the workshop “Virgil's Eclogues and Georgics, and their reception”, organized by Dr Juan Christian Pellicer and Professor Monika Asztalos at the University of Oslo in November 2007. 2 I wish to express my gratitude to Terence Cave and Kyrre Vatsend, who read with great care earlier drafts of this article and gave valuable advice on crucial aspects of it.      

Palaeographica

In view of certain recent trends in Vergilian criticism the function of his imitation is still an open issue in at least one important respect. The author discusses some instances where critics have posited allusions running counter to the surface meaning of the text, such as Aen. 6.460 (‐ Cat. 66.39); 4–412.lb (‐Ap. Rhod. Arg. 4.445); 8.394 (‐ Lucr. 1.34); 4.149 (‐ Il. 1.46). Instead of integrating into Vergil's text an alien, sometimes even subversive, voice, it is more satisfying to understand such cases on the basis of the general hallmark of Vergilian imitatio, its ability to transform influences and assimilate even incongruous elements.