Description

Class Summary

This course examines the lifetime health histories of Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd Lincoln through a critical review of historical documentation and contemporary medical scholarship. Using letters, eyewitness accounts, medical records, and modern retrospective analyses, the course explores reported physical illnesses, neuropsychiatric symptoms, chronic pain syndromes, infectious diseases, and possible genetic conditions. Particular attention will be given to differential diagnoses proposed by historians and clinicians, including mood disorders, neurologic conditions, migraine syndromes, and other chronic health concerns.

About the Instructor

Stephen Carp, Ph.D., is a faculty member of DeSales University. His primary area of expertise is motor control. He teaches in the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program. He also has a strong interest in presidential histories and recently published a systematic review manuscript on the medical histories of Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln.