In 1900 the famous German neurologist Hermann Oppenheim published a two-page article on “Myatonia congenita” which led to a long-lasting and confusing discussion in neurology and neuropediatrics, and which was extensively quoted throughout the 20th century. As this article is only available in German, an English translation is presented here. Further publications of Oppenheim on the same subject are mentioned and some comments are made on the impact of his seminal article. It had the merit of drawing the attention to the existence of congenital muscle diseases in children but its impact would be better understood by the influence Oppenheim had on his time, as he was one of the leading neurologists at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century.
Key words
Oppenheim - Myatonia congenita - Amyotonia congenita - Congenital muscular dystrophy - Congenital myopathies
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M. D. Maria Hoeltzenbein
Institut für Humangenetik
Fleischmannstr. 42
17487 Greifswald
Germany
eMail: Hoeltzen@uni-greifswald.de
