Multifocal Motor Neuropathy with Persistent Conduction Block: The Seminal Case

This article provides an insight into the medical history of MMN “patient zero” and the first scientific publication that led to the recognition of MMN by the medical community. Multifocal motor neuropathy is nowadays recognized as a disease that produces asymmetric muscle weakness and cramping, with spontaneous motor unit activity (fasciculations and myokymi a) but without sensory disorder. From an electrophysiological point of view, the neuropathy is characterized by persistent conduction blocks that usually initially affect the proximal upper extremity. The path to recognizing this rare entity was long and winding. In this article, we describe the fir st known patient suffering from this disease and the scientific context of its emergence, leading to the first publication on the subject, written by Gérard Roth (1923–2006) and his colleagues at the Neurology Department of Geneva University Hospital (Switzerland) [Eur Neurol. 1986;25(6):416–23 ].Eur Neurol
Source: European Neurology - Category: Neurology Source Type: research