Neurophysiology of conversion disorders: a historical perspective

The aim of this paper is to present a short historical perspective on the neurophysiological approach to hysteria and conversion disorders. The body of this paper will be constituted of three main parts. In the first part, we will present the significant progress due to some pioneers of neurology/psychiatry during the XIXth century. As we shall see, this period was particularly rich in personalities whose work gradually laid the foundations to a true medical approach to hysteria. In the first half of the XXth century, different factors have led to a long eclipse of the neurological approach to hysteria. In the second part, we will show how, by the 1960's-1970's, the conceptual and methodological advances in neurophysiology, as well as the turning point of cognitive sciences (and cognitive psychology in particular) allowed a gradual reinstatement of hysteria within the fields of neurology and clinical neurophysiology. Finally, and this is the third part of this paper, we will show how over the past three decades, an entirely new neurophysiological approach to hysteria and conversion disorders has emerged.