Arthur Earl Walker (March 12, 1907 – January 1, 1995) was a Canadian-born American

neurosurgeon Neurosurgery or neurological surgery, known in common parlance as brain surgery, is the medical specialty that focuses on the surgical treatment or rehabilitation of disorders which affect any portion of the nervous system including the brain, ...

neuroscientist A neuroscientist (or neurobiologist) is a scientist specializing in neuroscience that deals with the anatomy and function of neurons, Biological neural network, neural circuits, and glia, and their Behavior, behavioral, biological, and psycholo ...

and epileptologist remembered for the eponymous syndromes Dandy–Walker syndrome, Dandy–Walker-like syndrome and Walker–Warburg syndrome. During his career he published over 400 research articles and 8 books.

Biography

Arthur Earl Walker was born in 1907 in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

, and graduated from the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta (also known as U of A or UAlberta, ) is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta, and Henry Marshall Tory, t ...

in 1930. He undertook training at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

and in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

and

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

,Biography at whonamedit.com
/ref> and continued his training as instructor of neurological surgery at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

from 1937, becoming one of a new breed of neurosurgeons who advanced the scientific study of neurology and neurosurgery. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

he worked as Chief of Neurology at Cushing General Hospital in

Framingham, Massachusetts Framingham () is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. Incorporated in 1700, it is located in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middlesex County and the MetroWest subregion of the Greater Boston ...

, where he developed an interest in post-traumatic epilepsy. In 1947, he became professor of neurological surgery at the

Johns Hopkins Hospital Johns Hopkins Hospital (JHH) is the teaching hospital and biomedical research facility of Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1889, Johns Hopkins Hospital and its school of medicine are considered to be the foundin ...

. He was professor there for 25 years until his retirement in 1972, and during this time he established the division of neurosurgery and the formal resident training program in neurosurgery. He also established the electrophysiology laboratory which bears his name. He was a president of the

American Association of Neurological Surgeons The American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) is a professional organization focused on advancing the specialty of neurological surgery. Founded in 1931, the AANS serves a membership of over 12,000 professionals worldwide, including ne ...

and the World Federation of Neurological Societies, and after his retirement he became emeritus professor of neurology and neurosurgery at the

University of New Mexico School of Medicine The University of New Mexico School of Medicine (UNM School of Medicine) is a division of the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center (UNM HSC) located in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The UNM School of Medicine is home to a variety of degree-g ...

Albuquerque Albuquerque ( ; ), also known as ABQ, Burque, the Duke City, and in the past 'the Q', is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, Bernal ...

. He died on January 1, 1995, while travelling near

Tucson, Arizona Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...

, apparently of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

, aged 87.

Publications

In 1938, he published ''The Primate Thalamus'' which explained the organization of this part of the brain. In 1951, he edited ''A History of Neurological Surgery''. In 1942, he published an article describing congenital atresia of the foramens of Luschka and Magendie. A similar case had previously been described by

Walter Dandy Walter Edward Dandy (April 6, 1886 – April 19, 1946) was an American neurosurgeon and scientist. He is considered one of the founding fathers of neurosurgery, along with Victor Horsley and Harvey Cushing. Dandy is credited with numerous neuros ...

in 1921, and the syndrome became known as the Dandy–Walker syndrome. He also published an article on ''Lissencephaly'', which became known as Walker–Warburg syndrome after publication of further articles on the disorder by Mette Warburg. In 1945–46, he published studies of the effects of penicillin on the central nervous system.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Arthur Earl 1907 births 1995 deaths American neurosurgeons Johns Hopkins Hospital physicians Canadian emigrants to the United States People from Winnipeg University of Alberta alumni Yale University alumni University of Chicago alumni American epileptologists 20th-century American surgeons 20th-century Canadian surgeons