The HOPES Timeline (Non-Flash, Part 1)

A Brief History of Huntington's Disease

Scenes 1-5

16^th Century

Paracelsus, a Renaissance alchemist (1493-1541), coins the term "chorea" to describe the dance-like, uncoordinated movements that are now known to be symptomatic of HD

1686

English physician Thomas Sydenham attempts to classify different types of chorea and describe their causes.

1630s

English colonists in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York (especially Long Island) use names such as "that disorder" and "Saint Vitus´ dance" to describe HD.

1692

The Salem Witch Trials occur in Salem, Massachusetts. Some of the "witches" are now believed to have had HD. Their choreic movements and odd behavior were seen as possession by the devil.

1840s

For the first time, HD is described in the medical literature as "chronic hereditary chorea." Physicians in the United States, England, and Norway write about people with involuntary movements and mental disturbances that were inherited from a similarly affected parent. Three separate accounts are recorded, all by young physicians.

Click here to return to the main HOPES Timeline page.

Last Modified: 05/22/2009

An educational product of HOPES, not to be used in place of medical care. For more information about HOPES, click on the Logo. To contact HOPES with comments or questions, click here.