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Camillo Negro (1861–1927) and the “bulbo-palpebral hyperkinetic phenomenon” in peripheral facial palsy

  • History of Neurology
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Abstract

Camillo Negro (1861–1927) was a leading Italian neurologist and neuropathologist between the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. He is best known for describing the cogwheel sign in Parkinson disease. In an article published in 1906, Camillo Negro described the “bulbo-palpebral hyperkinetic phenomenon”: in peripheral facial paralysis, if the patient is asked to look up, the eyeball deviates outwards and elevates farther on the affected side. Negro thoroughly investigated the neuroanatomic and neurophysiological basis of this phenomenon that gained a certain popularity and was reported in several articles and textbooks. This sign retains some utility in peripheral facial palsy to identify a doubtful or very slight impairment of the upper face muscles, which may otherwise go unnoticed. The interest towards the semiology of peripheral facial palsy was shared by Negro's assistant Giuseppe Roasenda (1879–1959), who in 1933 described the incomplete convergence of the eyeballs in this condition.

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Acknowledgements

We deeply grateful to Stefania Carta, Claudia Gianeto, and Anna Sperone (on behalf of the Museo Nazionale del Cinema, Torino) for allowing us permission to show the video provided as supplementary material. We thank Roberto Ginesci, Biblioteca dell'Accademia di Medicina di Torino, for his help in retrieving pertinent literature, and Andrea Orioli for graphic support. We are also grateful to Paolo Benna, Neuroscience Department, Università di Torino, Turin, Italy, and Carmelo Roberto Labate, UOC di Neurologia, Ospedale Agnelli, Pinerolo, Italy, on behalf of the Italian Study Group on the History of Neurology of the Italian Neurological Society (Società Italiana di Neurologia, SIN), for their contribution to the final validation of the present manuscript and recommendations.

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This study was not funded.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurology, Hospital of Merano (SABES-ASDAA), Via Rossini, 5, 39012, Merano-Meran, Italy

    Francesco Brigo

  2. UOC Neurology and Stroke Unit, ASST Lecco, Merate, Italy

    Lorenzo Lorusso

Authors
  1. Francesco Brigo
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  2. Lorenzo Lorusso
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Consortia

the Study Group on the History of Neurology of the Italian Neurological Society

  • Stefania Carta
  • , Claudia Gianeto
  • , Anna Sperone
  • , Roberto Ginesci
  • , Andrea Orioli
  • , Paolo Benna
  •  & Carmelo Roberto Labate

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Francesco Brigo conceived and wrote the article; the other authors and contributors revised it critically for important intellectual content.

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Correspondence to Francesco Brigo.

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Supplementary information

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Supplementary file1 A short film showing a male patient with a left-sided peripheral facial palsy. The film belongs to the neuropathological movie shot by Camillo Negro between 1906 and 1908 with the help of his assistant Giuseppe Roasenda and the cinematographer Roberto Omegna [4]. At the beginning, the patient forcedly closes his eye showing the Bell's phenomenon and then repeatedly (6 times) looks up, showing the “bulbo-palpebral hyperkinetic phenomenon”. © Collezioni Museo Nazionale del Cinema di Torino, Turin. Reproduced with permission of Collezioni Museo Nazionale del Cinema di Torino. Permission to reuse must be obtained from the rightsholder. (MP4 81742 KB)

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Brigo, F., Lorusso, L. & the Study Group on the History of Neurology of the Italian Neurological Society. Camillo Negro (1861–1927) and the “bulbo-palpebral hyperkinetic phenomenon” in peripheral facial palsy. Neurol Sci 43, 2149–2152 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-021-05436-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-021-05436-3

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