Samuel Auguste Tissot and a seizure in Albrecht von Haller’s daughter: a historical vignette with a modern twist

Abstract Samuel Auguste Tissot, to whom in the Age of Enlightenment we owe the first new nosology of epilepsy after the ancient Greeks, was consulted on February 9, 1760, when Albrecht von Haller’s daughter Albertine suffered her first epileptic seizure the day after a ball. From letters exchanged between Haller and Tissot, we learn that Tissot believed the seizure was caused by factors that promoted and triggered seizures and revealed a predisposition to epilepsy, which could only be addressed through a disciplined lifestyle and a balanced diet. He went to considerable lengths to explain this to the young lady, including a long garden walk. Albertine reached an advanced age without experiencing further seizures. When comparing modern guidelines for first seizures with this account, the American guidelines make no mention at all of conditioning factors, whereas the German guidelines at least recognize the possible influence of sleep deprivation and alcohol, although without formulating a treatment strategy. Doctors in the field of epilepsy who wish to meet the challenge of the increasing influence of artificial intelligence with thoughtful medical judgment may find inspiration in Tissot.