The infectious disease with which our article deals does not seem to be new in the medical world; it is quite certain that it appeared from time to time as an endemic many centuries ago. There are authors (Netter) who think that Hippocrates knew about its peculiar aspect. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that the pandemic of epidemic encephalitis which lasted from 1916 up to the present time is the most extensive incidence of this disease.
We do not intend to go into a detailed description of the disease; since the first reports of Cruchet, Mouttier and Calmette in France and Economo in Vienna in 1917, an enormous bibliography on the subject has appeared. There are even many monographs about it (Achard, Reys, Mlle. Lévy, Conos, Verger, and Cruchet, Houin in France, Ministry of Health, Hall in England, Timme in the United States, Margulis in Russia and many others).
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