Goetz C.G. (1987) Charcot : Parkinson's Disease

 Goetz C.G. (1987) Charcot, the clinician. New York: Raven Press. Private collection, courtesy of MDS Member, Christopher G. Goetz, MD, Chicago, IL. Jean-Martin Charcot identified the cardinal features of Parkinson's disease and specifically separates the rigidity bradykinesia: Long before the rigidity actually develops, patients have significant difficulty performing ordinary activities: This problem is related to another cause. In some of the different patients showed you, you can easily recognize how difficult it is for them to make things even though rigidity or tremor is not the limiting factor. Instead, even a cursory examination shows that your problem is more related to the slow implementation of the movement and not the real weakness. Despite the tremor, the patient is still able to do more things, but he's done with remarkable slowness. Between thought and action there is a considerable amount of time. One would think that neural activity can only be carried out after a remarkable effort.

Charcot, 1869