Arthur K. Shapiro

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Arthur K. Shapiro
Born(1923-01-11)January 11, 1923
Mount Sinai School of Medicine (1978–1995)
Sub-specialtiesPsychiatry

Arthur K. Shapiro, M.D., (January 11, 1923 – June 3, 1995) was an American psychiatrist and expert on Tourette syndrome. His "contributions to the understanding of Tourette syndrome completely changed the prevailing view of this disorder";[2] he has been described as "the father of modern tic disorder research"[3] and is "revered by his colleagues as the first dean of modern Tourette syndrome researchers".[4]

Contributions to Tourette syndrome research

Haldol). The Shapiros reported the treatment in a 1968 article, published by the British Journal of Psychiatry,[6] after it was rejected by American journals.[2] The paper "severely criticized" the psychoanalytic approach, which had endured throughout the previous century, to treating the condition.[5]

Working with the New York patient families who founded the Tourette Syndrome Association (TSA, since renamed to TAA) in 1972, the Shapiros advanced the argument that Tourette's was neurological rather than psychological, and the medical view of Tourette syndrome was "freed from its century-long submission to discredited psychoanalytic theory".[5] In 1978, the Shapiros published a "landmark book" on the disorder, Gilles de la Tourette Syndrome.[5][a] In 1981, Shapiro was chosen honorary co-president of the First International Tourette Syndrome Symposium, held in New York.[7] Since the 1990s, a more neutral view of Tourette's is emerging[8] as a condition involving an interaction between biological vulnerability and adverse environmental events.[9]

A colleague, psychiatrist Ruth Bruun, described Arthur Shapiro as a revolutionary, "willing to challenge the prevailing dogma", "dynamic, charming, and relentlessly stubborn when fighting for what he thought was right", "an engaging speaker", and "a man of diverse interests and enthusiasm". Bruun also said, "It is extremely unusual for a couple of researchers to completely change the prevailing view of a disease, but this is exactly what they did."[2]

Personal life

Shapiro was born in Brooklyn, New York, and lived in Scarsdale, New York at the time of his death.

Mount Sinai School of Medicine.[10]

Shapiro was a collector of medical antiquities.[2] The Shapiros were married for 46 years, and "were obviously devoted to each other".[2]

After Arthur's death from lung cancer at the age of 72,[10] Elaine published their last joint effort, The Powerful Placebo: From Ancient Priest to Modern Physician.

Shapiro was survived by his wife, Elaine Schlaffer Shapiro, three children, a brother, and three grandchildren.[10]

Publications

Notes

  1. ^ The first edition was published in 1978; a second edition was published in 1988.

References

  1. ^ Social Security Death Index: Arthur K Shapiro
  2. ^ a b c d e f Cohen DJ, Jankovic J, Goetz CG, (eds). Advances in Neurology, Vol. 85, Tourette Syndrome. Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins, Philadelphia, PA, 2001., pp. xvii–xviii.
  3. PMID 16536367
    .
  4. ^ Leckman, JF. "A Cursing Brain? The Histories of Tourette Syndrome", Book review. The American Journal of Psychiatry October 1, 2001.
  5. ^ a b c d Pagewise, Inc. Tourette syndrome. Archived February 8, 2005, at the Wayback Machine Accessed 29 June 2006.
  6. PMID 4384341
    .
  7. ISBN 0-674-00386-1
  8. ^ Black, KJ. Tourette Syndrome and Other Tic Disorders. eMedicine (March 22, 2006). Accessed 27 June 2006.
  9. ^ Leckman JF, Cohen DJ."Tourette's Syndrome—Tics, Obsessions, Compulsions: Developmental Psychopathology and Clinical Care.". Archived from the original on 2005-03-03. Retrieved 2005-03-03. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, 1999, p. vii.
  10. ^ a b c d Saxon, Wolfgang (June 6, 1995). "Arthur Shapiro, 72; Led Research of Tourette's". New York Times. Retrieved 9 August 2009.
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