| This brochure has been prepared on the
occasion of the ninetieth anniversary of the date of founding of the
International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE). As the ILAE was established
in 1909, the ninetieth anniversary is at the same time the last anniversary
in the twentieth century. The history of the ILAE and of the journal
Epilepsia are closely related. The reference to the ninetieth
anniversary of the date of founding is appropriate as twice
a world war interrupted the proper functioning of the organization.
In fact, after World War I the ILAE had to be formally restarted;
during World War II the national chapters restored the international
work as soon as circumstances permitted. Given these interruptions
it could be argued that the organization is younger than might appear.
Epilepsia also had several interruptions. Four restarts
were marked by designating later issues as belonging to the second,
third and fourth series. When in 1974, without interruption the
publisher was changed from Elsevier to Raven Press the indication
Fourth Series was abandoned.
Unfortunately, for various reasons the archival materials of the
Executive Committees have been lost. Therefore most of the history
of the ILAE has been extracted from information published in Epilepsia.
In various issues of Epilepsia, apart from announcements
of the ILAE, reports are also published from the chapters, however,
as this publication is concerned with the umbrella organization
ILAE itself, the information from the chapters will only be cited
if it has bearing on the theme of this book.
The composition of the executive boards, a chart of the national
chapters, the subsequent constitutions, an overview of the Epilepsia
issues and an overview of the congresses are presented in appendices
I-V.
In a sense this account of the history is an outline. Examples
used to illustrate what happened in the course of the years are
the choice of the writer and not the responsibility of the present
Executive Committee. The writer is conscious of the fact that the
choices, in particular from the recent years in which the activities
in the field covered by the ILAE have so greatly expanded, are arbitrary
and often more inspired by having information at hand than by order
of importance. However, hopefully this booklet will provide a framework,
which may assist in producing a more balanced centennial publication,
based on further research in the history of epileptology and the
role of the ILAE. |
Preface
Introduction
The Onset
The Second Period
Post-World War II
Activities
References
Appendices
|
