Pierre Marie (9 September 1853 – 13 April 1940) was a French
neurologist
Neurology (from el, νεῦρον (neûron), "string, nerve" and the suffix -logia, "study of") is the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the brain, the spinal c ...
and political journalist close to the
SFIO.
Medical Career
After finishing medical school, he served as an interne (1878), working as an assistant to neurologist
Jean-Martin Charcot
Jean-Martin Charcot (; 29 November 1825 – 16 August 1893) was a French neurologist and professor of anatomical pathology. He worked on hypnosis and hysteria, in particular with his hysteria patient Louise Augustine Gleizes. Charcot is know ...
(1825–1893) at the
Salpêtrière and
Bicêtre Hospitals in Paris. In 1883 he received his medical doctorate with a graduate thesis on
Basedow’s disease
Graves' disease (german: Morbus Basedow), also known as toxic diffuse goiter, is an autoimmune disease that affects the thyroid. It frequently results in and is the most common cause of hyperthyroidism. It also often results in an enlarged thyro ...
, being promoted to ''médecin des hôpitaux'' several years later (1888). In 1907 he attained the chair of
pathological anatomy
Anatomical pathology (''Commonwealth'') or Anatomic pathology (''U.S.'') is a medical specialty that is concerned with the diagnosis of disease based on the macroscopic, microscopic, biochemical, immunologic and molecular examination o ...
at the Faculty of Medicine, and in 1917 was appointed to the chair of
neurology
Neurology (from el, νεῦρον (neûron), "string, nerve" and the suffix -logia, "study of") is the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the brain, the spinal ...
, a position he held until 1925. In 1911 Marie became a member of the ''
Académie de Médecine
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosop ...
''.
One of Marie's earlier contributions was a description of a disorder of the
pituitary gland
In vertebrate anatomy, the pituitary gland, or hypophysis, is an endocrine gland, about the size of a chickpea and weighing, on average, in humans. It is a protrusion off the bottom of the hypothalamus at the base of the brain. The h ...
known as
acromegaly
Acromegaly is a disorder that results from excess growth hormone (GH) after the growth plates have closed. The initial symptom is typically enlargement of the hands and feet. There may also be an enlargement of the forehead, jaw, and nose. Othe ...
. His analysis of the disease was an important contribution in the emerging field of
endocrinology
Endocrinology (from '' endocrine'' + '' -ology'') is a branch of biology and medicine dealing with the endocrine system, its diseases, and its specific secretions known as hormones. It is also concerned with the integration of developmental event ...
. Marie is also credited as the first to describe pulmonary hypertrophic osteoarthropathy,
cleidocranial dysostosis
Cleidocranial dysostosis (CCD), also called cleidocranial dysplasia, is a birth defect that mostly affects the bones and teeth. The collarbones are typically either poorly developed or absent, which allows the shoulders to be brought close togeth ...
and
rhizomelic
Rhizomelia refers to either a disproportion of the length of the proximal limb, such as the shortened limbs of achondroplasia, or some other disorder of the hip or shoulder.
According to Stedman's medical dictionary "rhizomelic" means "relating to ...
spondylosis. In his extensive research of
aphasia
Aphasia is an inability to comprehend or formulate language because of damage to specific brain regions. The major causes are stroke and head trauma; prevalence is hard to determine but aphasia due to stroke is estimated to be 0.1–0.4% in ...
, his views concerning language disorders sharply contrasted the generally accepted views of
Paul Broca
Pierre Paul Broca (, also , , ; 28 June 1824 – 9 July 1880) was a French physician, anatomist and anthropologist. He is best known for his research on Broca's area, a region of the frontal lobe that is named after him. Broca's area is involve ...
(1824–1880). In 1907, he was the first person to describe the
speech production
Speech production is the process by which thoughts are translated into speech. This includes the selection of words, the organization of relevant grammatical forms, and then the articulation of the resulting sounds by the motor system using the v ...
disorder of
foreign accent syndrome
Foreign accent syndrome is a medical condition in which patients develop speech patterns that are perceived as a foreign accent that is different from their native accent, without having acquired it in the perceived accent's place of origin.
Fo ...
.
Marie was the first general secretary of the ''Société Française de Neurologie'', and with
Édouard Brissaud
Édouard Brissaud (15 April 1852, Besançon – 20 December 1909) was a French physician and pathologist. He was taught by Jean Martin Charcot at Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital. He had interests in a number of medical disciplines including motion ...
(1852–1909), he was co-founder of the journal ''Revue neurologique''. His name is associated with the eponymous
Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease
Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease (CMT) is a hereditary motor and sensory neuropathy of the peripheral nervous system characterized by progressive loss of muscle tissue and touch sensation across various parts of the body. This disease is the most ...
, being named along with
Jean-Martin Charcot
Jean-Martin Charcot (; 29 November 1825 – 16 August 1893) was a French neurologist and professor of anatomical pathology. He worked on hypnosis and hysteria, in particular with his hysteria patient Louise Augustine Gleizes. Charcot is know ...
and
Howard Henry Tooth
Howard Henry Tooth (1856–1925) was a British neurologist and one of the discoverers of Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease.
Early life and education
Dr. Tooth was born on 22 April 1856 to Frederick Tooth of Hove, Sussex, England. He attended Ru ...
(1856–1925). This disease is characterized by gradual progressive loss of distal muscle tissue in the arms and feet. It is considered the most common disease within a group of conditions known as
"hereditary motor and sensory neuropathies" (HMSN).
Among the doctors trained by Pierre Marie at the beginning of the 20th century account the Spanish neuropathologists
Nicolás Achúcarro and
Gonzalo Rodríguez Lafora
Gonzalo Rodríguez Lafora (25 July 1886 – 27 December 1971) was a Spanish neurologist. He was a disciple of Nicolás Achúcarro and Santiago Ramón y Cajal and one of the most brilliant examples of the Spanish Neurological School (or Cajal Scho ...
, two distinguished disciples of
Santiago Ramón y Cajal
Santiago Ramón y Cajal (; 1 May 1852 – 17 October 1934) was a Spanish neuroscientist, pathologist, and histologist specializing in neuroanatomy and the central nervous system. He and Camillo Golgi received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or M ...
and members of the
Spanish Neurological School
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
.
Political career
From 1928, Marie left the medical academy to become a political journalist, first at
physical-culturist magazine La Culture Physique, where
Edmond Desbonnet served as his intellectual patron. His writings largely centred around his recommendations of exercise and fitness regimes, and his commentary on government sports and leisure policy.
In 1930, he turned to explicitly political writing as he moved to the Socialist Party's daily newspaper,
Le Populaire
''Le Populaire'' is a major independent daily newspaper in Senegal
Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ...
. He became increasingly involved in the
SFIO in the 1930s, gaining a reputation as the Party's foremost intellectual on matters of sports, leisure, and physical culture. His 1934 pamphlet, "Pour Le Sport Ouvrier", was adopted by the SFIO's Congress as official Party policy. This marked the first time the SFIO embraced physical culture explicitly. After the election of the
French Popular Front in 1936, he worked in the ministerial cabinet of
Léo Lagrange as a technical advisor, where he became a noted advocate of working-class sports and social hygiene within the French government. He is a rare figure to bridge the gap between French physical culturism and Socialism. After the fall of the Popular Front, Marie continued to write for Le Populaire.
Historians have disagreed about the date of Marie's death. While most medical sources place his death before Occupation, noted historian
Pascal Ory
Pascal Ory (born 31 July 1948) is a French historian. A student of René Rémond, he specialises in cultural and political history and has written on Fascism ever since his master's dissertation on the Greenshirts of Henri Dorgères. In the 1 ...
recently uncovered traces of Marie's writing in collaborationist newspapers Le Rouge et Le Bleu in support of the
Vichy regime
Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its ter ...
until 1941.
His collaborationism has led some historians to understand the influence of physical culture in the SFIO and the Vichy Regime as one path that led many Socialists - like Marie - to supporting Pétain.
Associated eponyms
* "Marie's ataxia": an hereditary disease of the
nervous system
In biology, the nervous system is the highly complex part of an animal that coordinates its actions and sensory information by transmitting signals to and from different parts of its body. The nervous system detects environmental changes ...
, with
cerebellar ataxia
Cerebellar ataxia is a form of ataxia originating in the cerebellum. Non-progressive congenital ataxia (NPCA) is a classical presentation of cerebral ataxias.
Cerebellar ataxia can occur as a result of many diseases and may present with sympto ...
.
* "Marie-Foix-Alajouanine syndrome":
cerebellar ataxia
Cerebellar ataxia is a form of ataxia originating in the cerebellum. Non-progressive congenital ataxia (NPCA) is a classical presentation of cerebral ataxias.
Cerebellar ataxia can occur as a result of many diseases and may present with sympto ...
of the
cerebellum
The cerebellum (Latin for "little brain") is a major feature of the hindbrain of all vertebrates. Although usually smaller than the cerebrum, in some animals such as the mormyrid fishes it may be as large as or even larger. In humans, the cerebe ...
in the elderly; usually due to alcohol abuse. Named along with neurologists
Théophile Alajouanine
Théophile Alajouanine (; 12 June 1890 – 2 May 1980) was a French neurologist.
Théophile Alajouanine was born in Verneix, Allier. He was a student of Joseph Jules Dejerine and a colleague of Georges Guillain and Charles Foix. He was a pr ...
(1890–1980) and
Charles Foix
Charles Foix (; 1 February 1882 – 22 March 1927) was a French internist and neurologist.
Charles Foix was born in Salies-de-Béarn, Pyrénées-Atlantiques. He studied medicine at the University of Paris and was a pupil of Pierre Marie at the Pit ...
(1882–1927).
* "Marie's anarthria": inability to articulate words due to cerebral lesions.
* "Marie–Strümpel Disease": also known as
ankylosing spondylitis
Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a type of arthritis characterized by long-term inflammation of the joints of the spine typically where the spine joins the pelvis. Occasionally areas affected may include other joints such as the shoulders or hi ...
; a severe arthritic spinal deformity. Named along with German neurologist
Adolph Strümpell (1853–1925). The disease is sometimes referred to as "Bekhterev Disease"; named after Russian neurophysiologist
Vladimir Bekhterev (1857–1927).
* "Marie-Léri syndrome": hand deformity caused by
osteolysis
Osteolysis is an active resorption of bone matrix by osteoclasts and can be interpreted as the reverse of ossification. Although osteoclasts are active during the natural formation of healthy bone the term "osteolysis" specifically refers to a pa ...
of the articular surfaces of the fingers. Named with neurologist
André Léri (1875–1930).
* "Bamberger-Marie disease": also known as
hypertrophic pulmonary osteoarthropathy
Hypertrophic osteoarthropathy is a medical condition combining clubbing and periostitis of the small hand joints, especially the distal interphalangeal joints and the metacarpophalangeal joints. Distal expansion of the long bones as well as painf ...
. Named with Austrian
internist Eugen von Bamberger Eugen von Bamberger (5 September 1858 – October 1921) was an Austrian internist born in Würzburg, Germany. He was the son of pathologist Heinrich von Bamberger (1822–1888).
He studied medicine at the Universities of Vienna and Würzburg, rec ...
(1858–1921).
Selected writings
Medical Writings:
*''Des formes frustes de la maladie de Basedow'', doctoral thesis, Paris, 1883.
* ''Sur deux cas d’acromégalie'', 1886.
* ''Sur une form particulière d'atrophie musculaire progressive; souvent familiale, débutant par les pieds et les jambes et atteignant tard les mains'', With Jean Martin Charcot. 1886
* "Essays on
Acromegaly
Acromegaly is a disorder that results from excess growth hormone (GH) after the growth plates have closed. The initial symptom is typically enlargement of the hands and feet. There may also be an enlargement of the forehead, jaw, and nose. Othe ...
", with bibliography and appendix of cases by other authors.
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
, 1891.
* ''Leçons sur les maladies de la moëlle épinière'', Paris, 1892. English translation by M. Lubbock as "Lectures on Diseases of the Spinal Cord", London, 1895.
* ''Sur l'hérédo-ataxie cérébelleuse'', Semaine médicale, Paris, 1893, 13: 444.
* ''L’évolution du langage considéré au point de vue de l’étude de l’Aphasie'', 1897.
* ''Dysostose cléido-crânienne héréditaire'', with Paul Sainton (1868–1958); 1897.
* ''Spondylose rhizomélique'', 1898.
* ''Neurologie'', two volumes; 1923.
Political Writings:
* ''Force et Santé Pour Tous, ou Le Triomphe de La Culture Physique'' (1928)
* ''Pour La Santé du Sédentaire'' (1931)
* ''Pour Le Sport Ouvrier'' (1934)
See also
*
A Clinical Lesson at the Salpêtrière
''A Clinical Lesson at the Salpêtrière'' (french: Une leçon clinique à la Salpêtrière) is an 1887 group tableau portrait painted by the history and genre artist André Brouillet (1857–1914). The painting, one of the best-known in the hi ...
References
Bibliography
''Pierre Marie''@
Who Named It
''Whonamedit?'' is an online English-language dictionary of medical eponyms and the people associated with their identification. Though it is a dictionary, many eponyms and persons are presented in extensive articles with comprehensive bibliograp ...
(biography)
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marie, Pierre
French neurologists
1853 births
1940 deaths
Physicians from Paris
French endocrinologists
Ankylosing spondylitis
Journalists from Paris