Roberts Bartholow: the progenitor of human cortical stimulation and his contentious experiment

• Published in: Neurosurgical focus Vol. 47; no. 3; p. E6
• Main Authors: Patra, Devi P, Hess, Ryan A, Abi-Aad, Karl R, Muzyka, Iryna M, Bendok, Bernard R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01-09-2019
• Subjects: Bartholow; Mary Rafferty; Roberts Bartholow; brain localization; human cortical mapping; history of brain mapping; cortical excitability
• ISSN: 1092-0684; 1092-0684
• DOI: 10.3171/2019.6.FOCUS19349

Roberts Bartholow, a physician, born and raised in Maryland, was a surgeon and Professor in Medicine who had previously served the Union during the Civil War. His interest in scientific research drove him to perform the first experiment that tested the excitability of the human brain cortex. His historical experiment on one of his patients, Mary Rafferty, with a cancerous ulcer on the skull, was one of his great accomplishments. His inference from this experiment and proposed scientific theory of cortical excitation and localization in humans was one of the most critically acclaimed topics in the medical community, which attracted the highest commendation for the unique discovery as well as criticism for possible ethical violations. Despite that criticism, his theory and methods of cortical localization are the cornerstone of modern brain mapping and have, in turn, led to countless medical innovations.