neurosurgical
focus Neurosurg Focus 39 (1):E8, 2015
Hitler’s parkinsonism
Lillian B. Boettcher, BA, Phillip A. Bonney, BS, Adam D. Smitherman, MD, and
Michael E. Sughrue, MD
Department of Neurosurgery, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Of the multitude of medical and psychiatric conditions ascribed to Hitler both in his lifetime and since his suicide in April
1945, few are more substantiated than parkinsonism. While the timeline of the development of this condition, as well as
its etiology, are debated, there is clear evidence for classic manifestations of the disease, most prominently a resting
tremor but also stooped posture, bradykinesia, micrographia, and masked facial expressions, with progression steadily
seen over his final years. Though ultimately speculation, some have suggested that Hitler suffered from progressive
cognitive and mood disturbances, possibly due to parkinsonism, that affected the course of events in the war. Here,
the authors discuss Hitler’s parkinsonism in the context of the Third Reich and its eventual destruction, maintaining that
ultimately his disease had little effect on the end result.
http://thejns.org/doi/abs/10.3171/2015.4.FOCUS1563
Key Words Hitler; parkinsonism; Parkinson disease; World War II
W
no shortage of unresolved controversies re-
ith one of 2 surviving children out of 6. He fell victim to an
lating to his life and career, Adolf Hitler remains attack of mustard gas on October 14, 1918, while serving
an intriguing figure and his life the subject of as a runner for Germany during World War I.22 He was
much debate. Unsurprisingly, many have gone to great briefly treated at the reserve hospital in Pasewalk, where
lengths to try to understand the Führer, who has done he received care in the department of neurology and psy-
more than any single person to shape the Western world chiatry.19 Here, he claimed to have experienced a period of
of the present day. For example, psychoanalysts have at- blindness,10 though this is likely an exaggeration. His early
tempted reconstructions of the adult mind of Hitler, plac- life is otherwise without medical significance.
ing his ideas—from fervent anti-Semitism and his views During his time as Führer, Hitler experienced frequent
on homosexuality to his thirst for war—in the context constipation and intestinal spasms that suggest the modern
of childhood experiences. These renderings have ranged diagnosis of irritable bowel syndrome. He had coronary
from compelling to wildly speculative; in general, the lack artery disease and/or hypertensive heart disease and may
of details and the unreliable reports on which many such have suffered a small myocardial infarction in July 1941.19
interpretations have rested would seem to lessen the mer- He was afflicted by photosensitivity, tinnitus, headaches,
its of their conclusions. Hitler’s medical history has been and insomnia.21 Regarding the latter, he tended to have
extensively scrutinized with similar frustrations arising some degree of sleep inversion as well, falling asleep well
from the incomplete body of evidence available. Unfor- after midnight and sleeping until mid- to late morning. In
tunately, the great majority of questions pertaining to his late September 1944 he became quite ill with cholestasis;
mental and physical state are unanswerable scientifically, very little workup was performed (Hitler was adamantly
and opinions will continue to form the basis of our under- opposed to diagnostic procedures, around the abdomen in
standing. particular), and he recovered after several weeks.21
Regarding his medical history, we do know that Hitler Numerous attempts have been made to attribute various
had an uneventful childhood, despite the fact that he was aspects of Hitler’s mindset and medical problems to phar-
submitted February 10, 2015. accepted April 3, 2015.
include when citing DOI: 10.3171/2015.4.FOCUS1563.
Disclosure The authors report no conflict of interest concerning the materials or methods used in this study or the findings specified in this paper.
©AANS, 2015 Neurosurg Focus Volume 39 • July 2015 1
Unauthenticated | Downloaded 08/06/21 12:10 PM UTC
L. B. Boettcher et al.
maceutical agents, notably 1) methamphetamine in the
form of Pervitin, which may or may not have been present
in Vitamultin, one of his physician’s (Theodor Morell) pro-
prietary drugs containing vitamins and other compounds;
2) narcotics (oxycodone) in the form of Eukodal, injected
for intestinal spasms; 3) cocaine, topically applied to the
nasal mucosa for sinusitis; and 4) strychnine, found in the
antigas pills which Hitler took copiously.19,21 These were
among the dozens of drugs used to treat Hitler at some
point in his final years, the bulk of which were prescribed
by Morell.19,21 While the detriments of polypharmacy in
general are worth acknowledgment, including the risks of
side effects and drug interactions, it is by no means clear
that Hitler experienced physiological dependence on or ei-
ther acute or chronic toxicities from any of these drugs.19,21
Evidence for Parkinsonism
Although Morell only acknowledged the diagnosis sev-
eral weeks before Hitler’s death,21 there is a good deal of
evidence that Hitler had been suffering for years from par-
kinsonism. The most thorough analysis was that of Ellen
Gibbels. She extensively reviewed newsreels from the time
and determined that Hitler first showed hypomotility in his
left arm in 1941, progressing later to his left leg and right
arm; a gait disturbance was apparent in 1943 and a tremor
in 1944.7,21 While Hitler’s coarse resting tremor was not
evidenced in film until 1944 due to the censoring efforts, it
was reported in 1942.7,21 His left hand was the most promi-
nently affected part of his body (https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=0w3nsAaOpq4, http://www.ushmm.org/ Fig. 1. Hitler standing with Mussolini sometime between 1941 and 1943,
online/film/display/detail.php?file_num=5389), though his his left hand clasped by his right. United States Holocaust Memorial
left leg and head were also affected to a lesser degree.22 Museum, courtesy of Muzej Revolucije and Narodnosti Jugoslavije, in
Images and film from 1941 to 1945 commonly show Hit- public domain.
ler either with his left hand either in his pocket or hold-
ing something, or with his right hand clasping his left to
suppress the tremor (Fig. 1). These signs were progressive, Hitler fell victim while hospitalized in 1918 after the mus-
though for several weeks after the assassination attempt tard gas attack.16,22 Due to the lack of records, this cannot
on July 20, 1944 (a bomb explosion carried out by Claus be excluded, though there seems little reason to suggest
Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg of the German resistance), that it occurred. Making matters difficult, the wastebas-
in which Hitler suffered minor injuries including bilateral ket diagnostic entity encephalitis lethargica has a number
rupture of tympanic membranes, Hitler’s tremor improved. of uncertainties associated with it, including its clinical
Morell used this fact to explain the tremor away as being presentation, cause, and sequelae.1,23,24 For example, post-
psychogenic, but the reason for the transient improvement encephalitic parkinsonism without encephalitis was not
remains a mystery. infrequently reported in the 1930s and 1940s.5,24
In addition to tremor, Hitler suffered from bradykine- Addressing the likelihood of the possible etiologies epi-
sia, rigidity, stooped posture, and a mild shuffling gait.6,7,21 demiologically, one diagnosis was not clearly more com-
He also developed micrographia (Fig. 2).18 He may have mon than another in Hitler’s time. In a study of more than
also had masked facial expressions and affected speech 800 patients with parkinsonism performed at Columbia
patterns,22 though these are less documented. Although from 1949 to 1964, idiopathic parkinsonism accounted
Hitler experienced depressive symptoms in the closing for 84% of cases, while postencephalitic parkinsonism ac-
months of his life, this is not altogether surprising given counted for 12% of cases.11 The proportion of cases from
the course of the war, and thus it is difficult to say whether encephalitis lethargica would have been considerably
he had a parkinsonian depression. Regardless, by the time higher in the early 1940s however, given the epidemic in
of his death, Hitler was mildly disabled by the disease the late 1910s and the 1920s, and according to one report,
(Hoehn and Yahr Stage 1.5 to 2).7–9,11,13 it may have accounted for half of all cases during that pe-
Regarding the etiology of Hitler’s parkinsonism, the riod.3
differential diagnosis is most reasonably limited to prima- While both diagnoses were relatively common, the
ry Parkinson disease and postencephalitic parkinsonism. ages of the populations affected differed considerably. In
Existing documents reveal no evidence of an episode of the Columbia study, the mean age at onset was 55 ± 11
encephalitis lethargica, though some have suspected that years for idiopathic Parkinson disease and 28 ± 9 years for
2 Neurosurg Focus Volume 39 • July 2015
Unauthenticated | Downloaded 08/06/21 12:10 PM UTC
Hitler’s parkinsonism
what far-fetched—in particular, there is no obvious indi-
cation that Hitler’s eyes were fixed upward in either epi-
sode.22 Stolk also suggested that those who were close to
Hitler knew of these crises; if true, it is certainly the case
that they would make every attempt to conceal them. One
might expect, however, that since the war’s end we might
have a better record of these episodes. While an intriguing
idea is that Hitler’s gastrointestinal complaints and insom-
nia (also with some circadian rhythm disruption) could
Fig. 2. Hitler’s signatures show development of micrographia between signify sequelae from encephalitis lethargica,16,20,22 the
1919 and 1945. The lower document is from his will. Reprinted from overall lack of evidence suggests Parkinson disease. How-
Parkinsonism Relat Disord, Vol. 2, No. 2, Lieberman A, “Adolf Hitler had ever, it is worth mention that in the 1930s and 1940s, there
post-encephalitic Parkinsonism,” pp 95–103, Copyright 1996, with per- existed considerable difficulty in distinguishing the two
mission from Elsevier. entities, and in one series 40% of patients were grouped
in an indeterminate category, presenting with symptoms
beyond that of primary Parkinson disease but without a
postencephalitic parkinsonism.11 Hitler’s age at the time definitive history of encephalitis lethargica.3 Thus, even if
of the gas attack was 29 years; he was 53 years old when Hitler had presented to a neurologist at the time, there is a
he showed obvious manifestations of the disease in 1941.7 fair chance that we still would not know the etiology of his
From this alone, his age would suggest primary Parkinson parkinsonism beyond doubt.
disease. In a review of film footage, Lieberman, a propo-
nent of the theory that Hitler had postencephalitic parkin- Theories Regarding Hitler’s Disease and War
sonism, discerned a left-sided bradykinesia much earlier
and determined the beginnings of Hitler’s parkinsonism Outcome
to be 1933, when Hitler was 44 years old.16 While if true Given the timing of his illness and its progressive na-
this finding would potentially serve to make an encepha- ture, it is interesting to consider if and how parkinsonism
litic etiology more plausible, the value of such an inter- affected Hitler’s actions over the course of World War II.
pretation is unclear, for it is unlikely that either Hitler or Beginning in 1940, Hitler significantly curtailed public
anyone around him noticed this subtle finding. appearances, making only 7 speeches that year, and these
If Hitler suffered from postencephalitic parkinsonism, only for significant military occasions.2 His avoidance of
a significant latency period between the encephalitic ill- public visibility became even more apparent with time—
ness and the onset of parkinsonism would be implied (23 from 1943 onward, he delivered only 2 public speeches,
years based on Gibbels’ timing of parkinsonism develop- frequently delegating others to speak at events in his
ment, assuming that encephalitis lethargica occurred in place,2 and, after the assassination attempt in July 1944, he
1918). Referring to a German study from 1937, Duvoisin was all but eliminated from public view.21,22 This may on
and Yahr noted, “Occasional cases were noted in which the surface suggest that Hitler’s parkinsonism was sepa-
Parkinsonism developed 15 or more years after apparent rating him from the German people against his will. If this
recovery from encephalitis lethargica, however such long were the case, however, we might expect Hitler to have
latencies were exceptional.” They cited a handful of other given many public radio broadcasts. Instead, over his last
studies with similar conclusions.5 In their study, conducted several years he gave only 5, which makes it more likely
on postencephalitic parkinsonism patients between 1961 that he was simply preoccupied by the war effort.2 In sup-
and 1964 at Columbia, Duvoisin and Yahr found that only port of this idea, Hitler assured Joseph Goebbels, Reich
4 of 27 (15%) definite cases began after a 15-year or longer Minister of Propaganda, that he would return to face the
latency period.5 This, combined with the fact that we have German public after a military success. In this, it is evi-
no reason to think that Hitler experienced encephalitis in dent that his fear of a negative public opinion in the wake
the first place, makes one less enthusiastic about the likeli- of mounting political failures was an important motivation
hood of an encephalitic etiology. for his absence. This was unfortunate for Hitler, because
Distinguishing the two diagnoses clinically, posten- his ability to command an audience—his fingerspitzenge-
cephalitic parkinsonism, in addition to a history of en- fühl (literally “finger tips feeling”), or intuition—formed
cephalitis, has several key features that commonly mani- the foundation of his political success, and his decreased
fest. Among them, oculogyric crises (in which the eyes are visibility undoubtedly depressed German resolve, particu-
paralyzed in an upward gaze for some time) occur in as larly as military defeats mounted.16
many as half of cases and are pathognomonic, establishing It has been further suggested that Hitler’s physical de-
the diagnosis even in the absence of a history of encepha- generation may have accelerated the implementation of
litis.5 Other signs include paralysis of convergence (nearly his ultimate plans. It is well established that throughout
three-fourths of cases), bulbar palsy (nearly one-third of his life, Hitler was preoccupied with his own mortality.14
cases), and oculomotor palsy (nearly one-fourth of cases).5 After his 50th birthday (in 1939), Hitler remarked that the
In both diagnoses, tremor is the presenting symptom for milestone reminded him of how old he truly was, and what
most patients.11 little time remained to fulfill his ambitions, acknowledg-
In Hitler’s case, possible evidence for 2 oculgyric crises ing, “In a few years I will be physically, perhaps mentally,
is presented by Stolk, though the instances appear some- too, no longer up to it.”14 Authors have frequently cited
Neurosurg Focus Volume 39 • July 2015 3
Unauthenticated | Downloaded 08/06/21 12:10 PM UTC
L. B. Boettcher et al.
Hitler’s Zeitangst, a fear of not having enough time to ac- decline mirroring that of the Third Reich, given his in-
complish his goals, as a key influence on his actions.4,21 creasing neurological symptoms and fatigability. And in-
Lieberman posited, “the self recognition of even minimal deed, for a man with such megalomania, losing his health
physical disability may have caused him to go to war more was tantamount to military defeat. As he lost control of
quickly than was commensurate with Germany’s military the war, and it became evident that his political and social
and industrial capacity at the time.”17 Namely, this may aims would be unrealized, he simultaneously seemed to
have hastened his decision to invade the Soviet Union in lose control over his disease. It is possible that this was a
June of 1941 while engaged in a war with England.4,16,17 factor in his suicide, as it is difficult for one to imagine that
However, others remain skeptical as to whether Hitler Hitler could have allowed himself to be subjugated to the
even recognized he had a neurodegenerative disease;12 at eyes of the world in view of his demise.
the least, it seems quite unlikely that he was aware of it in
1941.
The story near the war’s end was remarkably different. Conclusions
After a series of military defeats including the Battle of It is challenging to formulate an objective explanation
the Bulge on the Western Front and a steady advance by of the relationship between Hitler’s medical condition and
the Soviets on the Eastern Front, Hitler met with regional his actions during World War II. While his parkinsonism is
Nazi Party leaders in February 1945. In the 6 months of undisputed, it is imprudent to superimpose Hitler’s symp-
isolation up to this time, Hitler appeared to have aged sev- toms on numerous complex events, political interests, and
eral decades, bearing little resemblance to his former self. an enormous cast of characters. Speculation is interesting,
In preparation for the meeting, Goebbels had warned the but taken too far risks engendering a revisionist history.
officials ahead of time not to comment on Hitler’s appear-
ance.14 Nevertheless, Hitler’s physical deterioration could
not but cast doubt upon his leadership.22 He spoke to the References
Nazi Party’s “glorious” past, but could do little to revive
1. Berger JR, Vilensky JA: Encephalitis lethargica (von Econo-
confidence in his Party officials.14 Despite this, with a few mo’s encephalitis). Handb Clin Neurol 123:745–761, 2014
exceptions, his officers continued to follow their Führer’s 2. Bullock A: Hitler: A Study in Tyranny. New York: Harper
orders until the end.19 He alone authorized military and & Row, 1964
domestic decisions, devoid of input from a cabinet or con- 3. Dimsdale H: Changes in the Parkinsonian syndrome in the
sultation with other officials.14 twentieth century. Q J Med 15:155–170, 1946
Many arguments attribute Hitler’s military failures 4. Dorpat T: Wounded Monster: Hitler’s Path from Trauma
in the last few years of World War II variously to cog- to Malevolence. New York: University Press of America,
nitive and psychiatric disorders, including an inflexibility 2002
5. Duvoisin RC, Yahr MD: Encephalitis and Parkinsonism.
and lack of resilience stemming from parkinsonism.4,15,22 Arch Neurol 12:227–239, 1965
Lieberman perceived an indecisiveness in Hitler evident 6. Gibbels E: [Hitler’s neurologic disease—differential diag-
both during the invasion of France, in 1940, and the in- nosis of Parkinson syndrome.] Fortschr Neurol Psychiatr
vasion of the Soviet Union, in 1941.15 According to Li- 57:505–517, 1989 (Ger)
eberman, as German General Heinz Guderian’s forces 7. Gibbels E: [Hitler’s Parkinson syndrome. A posthumous mo-
infiltrated France in May 1940, Hitler repeatedly delayed tility analysis of film records of the German Weekly News
the advance against the advice of his generals, ultimately 1940–1945.] Nervenarzt 59:521–528, 1988 (Ger)
enabling the English to retreat.15 Regarding the Eastern 8. Goetz CG, Poewe W, Rascol O, Sampaio C, Stebbins GT,
Counsell C, et al: Movement Disorder Society Task Force
Front, Lieberman argued that Hitler’s parkinsonism-in- report on the Hoehn and Yahr staging scale: status and rec-
duced cognitive disorder was such that he “could not adapt ommendations. Mov Disord 19:1020–1028, 2004
to the novel, changing conditions of conducting a war on 9. Hägglund JV: Hitler’s Parkinson’s disease: a videotape illus-
a landscape four times larger than France.”15 The major- tration. Mov Disord 7:383–384, 1992
ity of authors have concluded, however, that Hitler experi- 10. Hitler A, Manheim R: Mein Kampf. Boston: Houghton Mif-
enced no cognitive disorder through the course of the war, flin, 1943
and others who perceived a mental decline saw this only 11. Hoehn MM, Yahr MD: Parkinsonism: onset, progression and
in Hitler’s final days, after the war had been lost.14,19,21 For mortality. Neurology 17:427–442, 1967
12. Horowski R, Horowski L, Calne SM, Calne DB: From Wil-
example, Kershaw attributed Hitler’s indecisiveness and helm von Humboldt to Hitler—are prominent people more
other particular traits demonstrated during the war not to prone to have Parkinson’s disease? Parkinsonism Relat Dis-
any mental incapacity brought about by his parkinsonism, ord 6:205–214, 2000
but to “inbuilt features of his character.”14 Along those 13. Jellinger KA: Had Adolf Hitler post-encephalitic parkinson-
lines, it seems unreasonable to conclude that the Führer’s ism? Parkinsonism Relat Disord 2:231, 1996 (Letter)
parkinsonism was responsible for each of Germany’s fail- 14. Kershaw I: Hitler, 1936-45: Nemesis. New York: W. W.
ures in the most intricately complex war in history. Rather Norton, 2000
more likely is that Hitler, a charismatic leader and capable 15. Lieberman A: Adolf Hitler’s cognitive disorder and how it
affected his conduct of World War II. Adv Neurol 80:459–
military strategist with absurd and ultimately unattainable 466, 1999
ambitions, faced inevitable defeat, and that any mistakes 16. Lieberman A: Adolf Hitler had post-encephalitic Parkinson-
he made along the way were simply manifestations of his ism. Parkinsonism Relat Disord 2:95–103, 1996
humanity. 17. Lieberman A: Hitler’s Parkinson’s disease began in 1933.
In his final months, it may be that Hitler saw his own Mov Disord 12:239–240, 1997
4 Neurosurg Focus Volume 39 • July 2015
Unauthenticated | Downloaded 08/06/21 12:10 PM UTC
Hitler’s parkinsonism
18. Lieberman AN: Adolph Hitler: his diaries and Parkinson’s
disease. N Engl J Med 309:375–376, 1983 (Letter)
19. Neumann HJ, Eberle H: Was Hitler Ill? A Final Diagnosis. Author Contributions
Malden, MA: Polity Press, 2013 Conception and design: Sughrue, Boettcher, Bonney. Acquisition
20. Recktenwald J: Woran hat Adolf Hitler gelitten? Eine neu- of data: Boettcher, Bonney. Analysis and interpretation of data:
ropsychiatrische Deutung. Munich: E. Reinhardt, 1963 Boettcher, Bonney, Smitherman. Drafting the article: Boettcher,
21. Redlich F: Hitler: Diagnosis of a Destructive Prophet. Bonney, Smitherman. Critically revising the article: all authors.
New York: Oxford University Press, 1999 Reviewed submitted version of manuscript: all authors. Approved
22. Stolk PJ: Adolf Hitler. His life and his illness. Psychiatr the final version of the manuscript on behalf of all authors:
Neurol Neurochir 71:381–398, 1968
Sughrue.
23. Vilensky JA, Gilman S, McCall S: Does the historical litera-
ture on encephalitis lethargica support a simple (direct) rela-
tionship with postencephalitic Parkinsonism? Mov Disord
25:1124–1130, 2010 Correspondence
24. Vilensky JA, Gilman S, McCall S: A historical analysis of Michael E. Sughrue, Department of Neurosurgery, University
the relationship between encephalitis lethargica and posten- of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, 1000 N. Lincoln Blvd.,
cephalitic parkinsonism: a complex rather than a direct rela- Ste. 4000, Oklahoma City, OK 73104. email: michael-sughrue@
tionship. Mov Disord 25:1116–1123, 2010 ouhsc.edu.
Neurosurg Focus Volume 39 • July 2015 5
Unauthenticated | Downloaded 08/06/21 12:10 PM UTC
