Janet G. Travell

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Janet G. Travell
Lyndon Johnson
Preceded byHoward McCrum Snyder
Succeeded byGeorge G. Burkley
Personal details
Born(1901-12-17)December 17, 1901
DiedAugust 1, 1997(1997-08-01) (aged 95)
Nationality
medical researcher
Known forPresident John F. Kennedy's personal physician

Janet Graham Travell (December 17, 1901 – August 1, 1997) was an American physician and medical researcher.[1]

Early life and education

She was born in 1901 to John Willard and Janet Eliza (Davidson) Travell. Heavily influenced by her father's profession of physician, Travell made the decision to pursue a career in the medical field. In June 1929, in New York City, Janet married John William Gordon Powell, who was an investment counselor. They had two daughters—Janet and Virginia. At the age of 95, Travell died of heart failure at her home in Northampton, Massachusetts.

She is remembered as President

trigger points as a cause of musculoskeletal referred pain
.

Career

During her career, Travell pioneered techniques for the treatment of

.

Travell accepted a Josiah Macy, Jr. Fellowship at

vapocoolant sprays to relieve pain. The sprays are still popular in sports medicine
treatments today.

It was her success with alleviating skeletal muscle pain that resulted in Travell being the first female personal Physician to the President. Travell was called upon by the personal orthopedic surgeon of Senator John F. Kennedy to assist with back pain treatments. Kennedy suffered from terrible pain possibly resulting from invasive back surgeries related to injuries sustained during World War II. When Kennedy won the presidential election in 1960, he appointed her as his personal physician.[2] Her treatments included the use of a rocking chair with a matching rocking ottoman to help alleviate back pain, in the process popularizing their use among the public, who saw the President pictured in his rocker in the Oval Office.[3] She continued to serve as Personal Physician to the President following the assassination of John F. Kennedy, with his successor Lyndon B. Johnson. She continued through Johnson's re-election, but decided to leave the White House in 1965.

While serving as the President's personal physician, Travell also took on the role of Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine at the George Washington University in 1961. Even after leaving the White House, she continued teaching at the university as a faculty member for the School of Medicine. She occupied positions as Associate Clinical Professor 1961–1970, Emeritus Clinical Professor of Medicine 1970–1988, and Honorary Clinical Professor of Medicine from 1988 until her death in 1997. Travell remained active in the medical field until the end: writing articles, giving lectures, and attending conferences.[4]

Research

Her personal interest led her to investigate, explain and expound on the phenomenon of

Morton's Toe
" and its responsibility for causing physical pain throughout the body.

Travell's research resulted in over 100 scientific articles, as well as the acclaimed 1983 co-authored book with David G. Simons: Myofascial Pain and Dysfunction. The Trigger Point Manual. She also wrote her autobiography, Office Hours: Day and Night, which sheds light on her career and life.

Quote

"I have lived in a very special world - a world of love and security; beauty and serenity; opportunity, adventure, and variety; challenge and achievement; and the appreciation of my peers. I have had a sufficiency of everything that I desired and a surfeit of nothing." Dr. Travell, author's note to Office Hours: Day and Night, 1968.[6]

References

  1. PMID 12638664
    .
  2. ^ Guide to the Janet G. Travell Papers, 1910-1997, Special Collections Research Center, Estelle and Melvin Gelman Library, The George Washington University
  3. ^ Guide to the Janet G. Travell Papers, 1910-1997, Special Collections Research Center, Estelle and Melvin Gelman Library, The George Washington University
  4. ^ ""Morton's Toe"". Archived from the original on 2011-05-29. Retrieved 2010-01-30.
  5. ^ "The President's Physician: The life and legacy of Dr. Janet G. Travell" (2003) Archived 2010-06-18 at the Wayback Machine, Special Collections Research Center, Estelle and Melvin Gelman Library, George Washington University.

External links