Janet Graham Travell (December 17, 1901 – August 1, 1997) was an American physician and medical researcher.

Early life and education

She was born in 1901 to John Willard and Janet Eliza (Davidson) Travell. Heavily influenced by her father's profession of

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

, Travell made the decision to pursue a career in the medical field. In June 1929, in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, Janet married John William Gordon Powell, who was an investment counselor. They had two daughters—Janet and Virginia. At the age of 95, Travell died of

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...

at her home in

Northampton Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. She is remembered as President

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...

's personal physician and a researcher of the concept of

trigger point Myofascial trigger points (MTrPs), also known as trigger points, are described as hyperirritable spots in the skeletal muscle. They are associated with palpable nodules in taut bands of muscle fibers. They are a topic of ongoing controversy, ...

s as a cause of musculoskeletal

referred pain Referred pain, also called reflective pain, is pain perceived at a location other than the site of the painful stimulus. An example is the case of angina pectoris brought on by a myocardial infarction (heart attack), where pain is often felt in th ...

Career

During her career, Dr. Travell pioneered techniques for the treatment of

myofascial pain Myofascial pain syndrome (MPS), also known as chronic myofascial pain (CMP), is a syndrome characterized by chronic pain in multiple myofascial trigger points ("knots") and fascial (connective tissue) constrictions. It can appear in any body part ...

, including

dry needling Dry needling, also known as trigger point dry needling and intramuscular stimulation, is a treatment technique used by various healthcare practitioners, including physical therapists, physicians, and chiropractors, among others. Acupuncturists us ...

. Her career began with her educational pursuits at

Wellesley College Wellesley College is a private women's liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henry and Pauline Durant as a female seminary, it is a member of the original Seven Sisters Colleges, an unofficial g ...

and continued in graduate school as she pursued an M.D. from

Cornell University Medical College The Joan & Sanford I. Weill Medical College of Cornell University is Cornell University's biomedical research unit and medical school located in Upper East Side, Manhattan, New York City, New York. Weill Cornell Medicine is affiliated with New ...

. Upon graduating in 1926, Travell completed two years of residency at

New York Hospital Weill Cornell Medical Center (previously known as New York Hospital or Old New York Hospital or City Hospital) is a research hospital in New York City. It is part of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital and the teaching hospital for Cornell University. ...

while concurrently serving as an ambulance surgeon for the New York City police force. After completion of residency, Travell became a research fellow at

Bellevue Hospital Bellevue Hospital (officially NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue and formerly known as Bellevue Hospital Center) is a hospital in New York City and the oldest public hospital in the United States. One of the largest hospitals in the United States b ...

, where she studied the effects of

digitalis ''Digitalis'' ( or ) is a genus of about 20 species of herbaceous perennial plants, shrubs, and biennials, commonly called foxgloves. ''Digitalis'' is native to Europe, western Asia, and northwestern Africa. The flowers are tubular in sha ...

in patients with

lobar pneumonia Lobar pneumonia is a form of pneumonia characterized by inflammatory exudate within the intra-alveolar space resulting in consolidation that affects a large and continuous area of the lobe of a lung. It is one of three anatomic classifications o ...

. Once her fellowship was concluded, Travell returned to

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...

to serve as instructor in the Department of Pharmacology and later as Associate Professor of Clinical Pharmacology. While working for Cornell, she also acted as a cardiology consultant for

Sea View Hospital Seaview Hospital was a historic tuberculosis sanatorium, now a national historic district located at Willowbrook on Staten Island, New York. The complex was planned and built between 1905 and 1938 and was the largest and most costly municipal fac ...

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull an ...

. Travell accepted a Josiah Macy, Jr. Fellowship at Beth Israel Hospital in New York to study arterial disease from 1939 to 1941. It was during her tenure that she first became interested in skeletal

muscle pain Myalgia (also called muscle pain and muscle ache in layman's terms) is the medical term for muscle pain. Myalgia is a symptom of many diseases. The most common cause of acute myalgia is the overuse of a muscle or group of muscles; another likel ...

, which defined her later career. Her research produced new anesthetic techniques for the treatment of painful

back The human back, also called the dorsum, is the large posterior area of the human body, rising from the top of the buttocks to the back of the neck. It is the surface of the body opposite from the chest and the abdomen. The vertebral column run ...

muscle spasm A spasm is a sudden involuntary contraction of a muscle, a group of muscles, or a hollow organ such as the bladder. A spasmodic muscle contraction may be caused by many medical conditions, including dystonia. Most commonly, it is a muscle c ...

s that proved very successful among patients. Travell's techniques included the use of a local

procaine Procaine is a local anesthetic drug of the amino ester group. It is most commonly used in dental procedures to numb the area around a tooth and is also used to reduce the pain of intramuscular injection of penicillin. Owing to the ubiquity ...

injection and

vapocoolant Freeze spray (cold spray or vapocoolant) is a type of aerosol spray product containing a liquified gas used for rapidly cooling surfaces, in medical and industrial applications. It is usually sold in hand-held spray cans. It may consist of vario ...

sprays to relieve pain. The sprays are still popular in

sports medicine Sports medicine is a branch of medicine that deals with physical fitness and the treatment and prevention of injuries related to sports and exercise. Although most sports teams have employed team physicians for many years, it is only since the ...

treatments today. It was her success with alleviating skeletal muscle pain that resulted in Travell being the first female personal

Physician to the President The physician to the president is the formal and official title of the physician who is chosen by the president to be his personal physician. Often, the physician to the president also serves as the director of the White House Medical Unit, a u ...

. Travell was called upon by the personal orthopedic surgeon of Senator John F. Kennedy to assist with back pain treatments. Kennedy suffered from terrible pain possibly resulting from invasive back surgeries related to injuries sustained during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. When Kennedy won the presidential election in 1960, he appointed her as his personal physician. Her treatments included the use of a

rocking chair A rocking chair or rocker is a type of chair with two curved bands (also known as rockers) attached to the bottom of the legs, connecting the legs on each side to each other. The rockers contact the floor at only two points, giving the occupant ...

with a matching rocking ottoman to help alleviate back pain, in the process popularizing their use among the public, who saw the President pictured in his rocker in the Oval Office. She continued to serve as Personal Physician to the President following the

assassination of John F. Kennedy John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, was assassinated on Friday, November 22, 1963, at 12:30 p.m. CST in Dallas, Texas, while riding in a presidential motorcade through Dealey Plaza. Kennedy was in the vehicle with ...

, with his successor

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...

. She continued through Johnson's re-election, but decided to leave the White House in 1965. While serving as the President's personal physician, Travell also took on the role of Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine at the

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

in 1961. Even after leaving the White House, she continued teaching at the university as a faculty for the School of Medicine. She occupied positions as Associate Clinical Professor 1961–1970, Emeritus Clinical Professor of Medicine 1970–1988, and Honorary Clinical Professor of Medicine from 1988 until her death in 1997. Travell remained active in the medical field until the end: writing articles, giving lectures, and attending conferences.

Research

Her personal interest led her to investigate, explain and expound on the phenomenon of

myofascial pain syndrome Myofascial pain syndrome (MPS), also known as chronic myofascial pain (CMP), is a syndrome characterized by chronic pain in multiple myofascial trigger points ("knots") and fascial (connective tissue) constrictions. It can appear in any body part ...

, secondary to

s, first written about in the 1920s by Dr Dudley J. Morton. She drew attention to the role of "

Morton's Toe Morton's toe is the condition of having a first metatarsal which is short in relation to the second metatarsal (see diagram). It is a type of brachymetatarsia. This condition is the result of a premature closing of the first metatarsal's growt ...

" and its responsibility for causing physical pain throughout the body. Travell's research resulted in over 100 scientific articles, as well as the acclaimed 1983 co-authored book with David G. Simons: ''Myofascial Pain and Dysfunction. The Trigger Point Manual.'' She also wrote her autobiography, ''Office Hours: Day and Night'', which sheds light on her career and life.

Quote

: "I have lived in a very special world - a world of love and security; beauty and serenity; opportunity, adventure, and variety; challenge and achievement; and the appreciation of my peers. I have had a sufficiency of everything that I desired and a surfeit of nothing." Dr. Travell, author's note to ''Office Hours: Day and Night'', 1968."The President's Physician: The life and legacy of Dr. Janet G. Travell" (2003)
, Special Collections Research Center, Estelle and Melvin Gelman Library,

References

External links

JanetTravellMD.com

Myofascial Pain and Dysfunction: The Trigger Point Manual

Office Hours: Day and Night, The Autobiography of Janet Travell, M.D.

Dr. Janet G. Travell, M.D.: "The Mother of MYOFASCIAL - TRIGGER POINT Knowledge"
*
Guide to the Janet G. Travell Papers, 1910-1997, Special Collections Research Center, Estelle and Melvin Gelman Library, the George Washington University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Travell, Janet G. American cardiologists Women cardiologists American medical researchers Weill Cornell Medical College alumni Wellesley College alumni 20th-century American women physicians 20th-century American physicians 1901 births 1997 deaths Place of birth missing Physicians to the President Kennedy administration personnel George Washington University faculty