The development of pediatric neurosurgery in Paris. How to create something out of nothing: reflexions on the...

Up to 1960, children in need of neurosurgical treatment in France were treated either in neurosurgical departments where anesthetists, nurses and neurosurgeons had no specialized training in pediatrics or in departments of pediatric surgery in which the specific aspect of neurosurgery was ignored. Clearly a mutation was needed before any progress could be made: the development of pediatric neurosurgery services. This essay tells the story of the creation of the first pediatric neurosurgery service in France, of the difficulties encountered and of the strategies applied to overcome them. It also recalls the discussions about what size such a service should be and whether it should be located in a general hospital or in a pediatric hospital. During the second half of the twentieth century, progress in neurosurgery, and more specifically in pediatric neurosurgery, has been tremendous. The contribution of the pediatric neurosurgery service at Les Enfants Malades in Paris is briefly summarized.