January 20 – On This Day in Medical History

Medical milestones, landmark publications, and notable births and deaths associated with January 20.

Events

2020 – First U.S. COVID-19 Case. The CDC confirmed the first laboratory-proven case of SARS-CoV-2 in the United States. The 35-year old patient presented to an urgent care clinic in Snohomish County, Washington, with a 4-day history of cough and subjective fever having recently returned from Wuhan, China.

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Births

1857 – Vladimir Mikhailovich Bekhterev (1857-1927), Russian neurologist. Best known for noting the role of the hippocampus in memory; his study of reflexes; and Bekhterew disease (ankylosing spondylitis)

1877 – Jean-Jacques Lhermitte (1877-1959), French neurologist. Described multiple neurological conditions including Lejonne-Lhermitte disease (1909), Lhermitte-Cornil-Quesnel syndrome (1920), Lhermitte-Duclos disease (1920), Lhermitte sign (1924, 1927), Lhermitte-McAlpine syndrome (1926), Lhermitte syndrome (1922), Lhermitte-Lévy syndrome (1931), and Lhermitte syndrome

1885 – Thomas Bentley Throckmorton (1885-1961), American neurologist; described Throckmorton sign (John Thomas sign), and the Throckmorton reflex (1911)

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Deaths

1720 – Giovanni Maria Lancisi (1654-1720), Italian physician; described Lancisi Sign and Commotio cordis (1707)

1885 – Lorenz Böhler (1885-1973), Austrian surgeon; described Böhler angle (1931)

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Further reading

• Holshue ML et al. First Case of 2019 Novel Coronavirus in the United States. N Engl J Med. 2020 Mar 5;382(10):929-936.

There are only two persons who know the anatomy of the brain perfectly – God and Bekhterev.

Friedrich Kopsch