Gilles de la Tourette and his syndrome

Abstract

Georges Albert Edouard Brutus Gilles de la Tourette was born and raised in an era of French splendor; he was an outstanding student, educated to have a brilliant career as a doctor. Passing through the Pitie-Salpetriere hospital was critical in his life, there were the place where he had the opportunity to meet Professor Jean-Martin Charcot, who would be his colleague and friend throughout his life. Charcot gave him the opportunity and the tools to study his passion, neurology, in a comprehensive manner, and to pursue interesting cases dedicated to the study of the human mind.

It was thanks to this that he could so aptly describe the disease that concerns us today as Tourette's syndrome. His study and tireless curiosity also allowed him to get involved not only with this syndrome but helped him make multiple descriptions of other diseases and to enter the new field of hypnotism. But his premature death, due to an illness which would have been curable today, cut short this brilliant career; otherwise, he would, most certainly, have contributed a lot more to our current knowledge of neurology.