Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, USA.
Neurology. 2013 Apr 30;80(18):1710-4. doi: 10.1212/WNL.0b013e3182904f55.
E.C. Seguin was one of the early, influential 19th-century neurologists who participated in the development of neurology as a specialty in the United States. Born in France, but raised from early childhood in the United States, Seguin published widely, developed a high-profile New York City practice, and was named Clinical Professor of Diseases of the Mind and Nervous System at the College of Physicians and Surgeons (New York) in 1874. Typical of the era, he studied neurologic disorders, but also several conditions that today would be considered in the realm of psychiatry. One of his seminal papers was titled "The treatment of mild cases of melancholia at home" (1876). Contrary to the widespread practice of isolating patients in either rest homes or asylums, Seguin introduced and formalized treatment of depression within the household. Against this academic backdrop, Seguin returned home on October 31, 1882, to discover that his own wife, afflicted with long-standing depression and treated at home, had committed suicide after murdering their 3 children. The grim dichotomy between the confidently written paper and the reality of the treatment failure is a neurologic lesson in humility regarding diseases and their unpredictable outcomes.
E.C. 西格尔是 19 世纪早期的一位有影响力的神经学家，他参与了美国神经学专业的发展。西格尔出生于法国，但从小在美国长大，他广泛发表作品，在纽约市开设了一家备受瞩目的诊所，并于 1874 年被任命为纽约医师与外科医师学院（College of Physicians and Surgeons）的疾病心理与神经系统临床教授。与当时的典型情况一样，他研究了神经紊乱，但也研究了一些今天被认为属于精神病学领域的疾病。他的一篇重要论文题为“在家中治疗轻度忧郁症”（1876 年）。与将患者隔离在疗养院或收容所的普遍做法相反，西格尔在家庭中引入并规范了对抑郁症的治疗。在这种学术背景下，1882 年 10 月 31 日，西格尔回到家中，发现自己长期患有抑郁症并在家中接受治疗的妻子在杀害了他们的 3 个孩子后自杀了。自信地撰写论文与治疗失败的现实之间严峻的二分法，是神经科学在面对疾病及其不可预测的结果时谦逊的一课。
