History Page

The history of teratology is a very interesting subject because it directly reflects the views, religions, beliefs, and technology of the time. As these subjects change and grow, so does the publicÕs interpretation and acceptance of birth defects.

Teratology began as a descriptive science, seen in images, sculptures, paintings and drawings. Some of these images were realistic, some were passed on verbally where oneÕs imagination can become creative. It began as a type of folklore which would change a bit with each passing generation.

The earliest figures/drawings found were often those of dicephalic twins, one of the first being a white marble figurine of the goddess of Anatolia (6500 BC). This statue was found in 1962 by archaeologists at Catal HŸyuk in southern Turkey. Similar carvings were found in tombs in Mexico dating from 500 BC to 800 AD. A rock etching of dicephalic twins was found outside of Sydney, Australia, dating to 4000-5000 BC. The drawing is of a double headed figure with 6 fingers on one hand and 4 on the other.

The oldest written records of teratology and malformations were found on clay tablets on the bank of the Tigris river. The Tablet of Nineveh, written by the Chaleans, is approximately 4000 years old. It contains a list of 62 malformations including the interpretation of the birth defects. These malformations were used to predict the future of several events such as the future of the king, the weather, and the yearÕs harvest.

For Example:
When a woman gives birth to an infant:

that has no mouth, the mistress of the house will die
whose upper lip overrides the lower, the peoples of the world will rejoice
that has no right hand, the country will be convulsed by an earthquake

There are even references in the Bible to the effects of teratogenic agents (Judges 13:3-4) "You will conceive and bear a sonÉnow then be careful to take no wine or strong drink and to eat nothing unclean".

Some of the earliest theories in teratology will be discussed below. Follow the links to a particular section or scroll down.

Many superstitions surrounded the birth of a malformed child. This child may be the result of demonic activity, a punishment from the gods, or even the result of the stars and moon. The word "monster" historically refers to a malformed infant yet it is most likely derived from monstrare (to show) or monere (to warn). These children were used as communications from the gods, giving warning to those on Earth. One of the earliest records of this is the Tablet of Nineveh (see Early History above).

As stories were passed from generation to generation, they were greatly exaggerated, eventually forming myths and (possibly) the gods of ancient times. For instance, the Egyptian gods Ptah and Bes were achondroplastic dwarfs. The Greek gods such as Atlas and Janus also resemble human malformations. During the rule of Pliny, it was thought malformed infants were the will of the gods; a way to show the godÕs power or a god at play, showing humor. Pliny was quoted as saying, "Nature creates monsters for the purpose of astonishing us and amusing herself".

Malformed children were also seen as messengers from the Christian God. Luther and Melanchthon wrote Der Papstesel (1523) recording similar beliefs. They told a story of an ass-like monster found in a river; a sign from God indicating the doom of the papacy. HollŠnder published a pamphlet comparing human malformations with then current day fashions, suggesting that God disapproves of the style. One child had pterygium colli, a malformation similar to the collars that were in style at the time. These beliefs of portents followed the settlers to the United States.

The theory of hybridization proposed that animals were involved in the procreation of malformed children. It began in ancient India and Egypt were the souls of humans could be transmitted to animals, an honor since animals were highly regarded. E.G. Saint-Hilaire reported finding a human skeleton with anencephaly in a monkey burial ground, a great privilege since the monkey carries a high rank in Egyptian culture. This child was considered sacred. In cultures such as these, the child was quickly accepted as a blessing.

In European/Christian cultures, hybrid children were looked upon as a sin and were in great danger of being burned at the steak along with their mother. There is reference to this in the Bible (Leviticus 20:15-16):

If a man has carnal relations with an animal, the man shall be put to death and the animal shall be slain. If a woman goes up to any animal to mate with it, the woman and the animal shall be slain; let them both be put to death.

A case was tried circa 1200 AD in which a woman gave birth to a cow with human features. The mother was sentenced to burn to death but she was freed by the arguments of her lawyer, Albertus Magmis. His justification was that the birth of her child was not caused by procreation with an animal but instead by the positioning of the stars, a perfectly acceptable and legal reasoning.

The 17th century in Europe contained many recorded trials of hybridization. The first was in New Haven, Connecticut in 1641. A cyclopic pig with a proboscis was born on a local farm. It was proposed this pig was the offspring of George Spenser, a neighbor. Spenser also had only one good eye (and one with a cataract), which made him a reasonable choice for the pigletÕs father. On April 8, 1642 the mother pig and George Spenser were sentenced to death. Another case was tried in 1683 resulting in the death of a woman in Copenhagen. She was burned at the stake for having a child with a "catÕs head".

Special watch should be kept over our pregnant women during the year of their pregnancy to guard the expectant mother against the experiences of frequent and violent pleasures ø or pains either ø and insure her cultivation of a gracious, bright and serene spirit.

-Plato

From ancient times (~400 BC) to the late 1800Õs, it was thought that the embryonic formation of a child could be influenced by maternal impressions such as thoughts, emotions and sights. Similar beliefs were present in Europe, the Near East, India, China, Japan, South America and Africa. There were two general theories of maternal impression:

1. Impressions at conception or during pregnancy have a photographic effect on the child.

2. Frights, shock, etc. have nonspecific effects on the development of the offspring.

There are even references in the book of Genesis (Chapter 30) to maternal impression. Jacob wanted a large number of speckled sheep and goats in his flock of solid colored animals. So, he pealed the bark from tree branches (so theyÕre striped) and placed them by the trough. As offspring were conceived by the trough, their mothers would see the striped branch and transfer that image to the young.

There are many references to maternal impression during Greek and Roman times. Pliny wrote that male and/or female thoughts at conception influence the fetus. Therefore, during pregnancy, women would avoid looking at animals to save the development of their child. Spartan law forced pregnant women to look at statues of Caster and Pollux to make their children strong and handsome. Unattractive children were the result of mothers not attending to their duty. ParŽ listed maternal impression as one of his 13 possible causes of birth defects. He hypothesized that after 42 days of pregnancy, the fetus could not be altered by maternal impression because it had already acquired a perfect figure.

In the 17th and 18th century, French philosopher Nicolas de Malebranche (1638-1715) recorded the case of a mother who witnessed the execution of a criminal on the wheel. She gave birth to a child with the same broken bones (later termed osteogenesis imperfecta). This case was revisited by Ernest Martin in 1880 who explained the disorder was caused by uterine contractions.

By the early 1900Õs it was understood that there was no nervous connection between mother and child. So how are these maternal impressions passed through the placenta? Teratologic studies by William Hunter determined most malformations occur early in pregnancy and often the tales of maternal impression reflect events later in the pregnancy. The theory of maternal impression began to deflate.

During the 15th and 16th century, the believe that devils, witches and demons lived among people was prominent. Children born with malformations such as phocomelia, syndactyly, ichthyosis, club foot, etc. were believed to be offspring of the devil. These children and/or mothers were often put to death shortly after the child was born.

Publications were often circulated depicting children of the devil with wings instead of arms (maybe our present day phocomelia or syndactyly). One popular sketch portrayed the birth of a devil in Krakow, Poland in 1543. This child had the head of a cat, fiery eyes, a monkey head at each axilla, small dog heads on the arms and knees, a tail and webbed fingers and toes. This drawing was reprinted for centuries to come.

During the late 17th century, the microscope was invented, giving scientists a glimpse at embryonic development: gametes, fertilization, and development were now observable. William Harvey (1651) proposed the theory of arrested development (development is halted at an earlier, incomplete stage) as a cause for malformation. Anomalies such as cleft lip and palate are similar to stages the embryo passes through in development. Maybe these malformations are due to arrested development at an earlier embryonic state. Harvey went on to describe the influence of uterine anatomy and maternal posture on the development of the fetus.

Aristotle and Hippocrates were strong believers that mechanical forces could in fact induce birth defects. They thought uterine pressure and/or trauma could alter fetal development. In ParŽÕs Monsters and Marvels, he listed 13 possible causes of birth defects, three of which were mechanical forces: narrow or small womb, posture of the mother, or a fall/blow to the womb. These forces could induce amputations, dislocations, fractures, etc.

The theory of maternal forces persisted into the 1900Õs. In the early 1800Õs, corsets were at the height of fashion. They were blamed by many physicians for the induction of malformations. (One must keep in mind, these same corsets were often used to conceal pregnancy.) Ballantyne, in the early 1900Õs, hypothesized that internal pressures alter fetal development. These pressures were tumors, small uterus, fibroids, contractions or twins pressing against one another.

Ancient biologists believed semen contained all "forces" necessary to make an embryo. Too much, too little or old semen resulted in a malformation. Excess semen resulted in duplicated structures, twins, overgrowth, etc. Too little semen induced deficient structures. These ideas predominated through ancient Greek and Roman times until the rediscovery of MendelÕs work in 1900 and WeissmannÕs germ plasm theory in 1880.

Ambrois ParŽ wrote Des Monstres et Prodiges in 1573, recording mechanical, hereditary, and intrauterine factors as causes for birth defects. He presented 13 sketches complete with a detailed description and cause.

Ambrois ParŽ wrote that there are several things that cause monsters:

The first is the glory of God.
The second, his wrath.
The third, too greatly a quantity of seed.
The forth, too little a quantity.
The fifth, the imagination.
The sixth, the narrowness or smallness of the womb.
The seventh, the indecent posture of the mother, as when, being pregnant, she has sat too long with her legs crossed, or pressed against her womb.
The eighth, through a fall, or blows struck against the womb of the mother, being with child.
The ninth, through hereditary or accidental illnesses.
The tenth, through rotten or corrupt seed.
The eleventh, through mixture or mingling of seed.
The twelfth, through the artifice of wicked spital beggars.
The thirteenth, through Demons and Devils.

Aldrovandus wrote a similar book in 1642 entitled Monstrorium Historia containing wood cuts, factual descriptions and possible causes for many malformations. This book was used as a medical text for many years to follow.

J.W. Ballantyne was a prominent Ob/Gyn in the early 1900Õs. He wrote a two volume text entitled Manual of Antenatal Pathology and Hygine. Volume 1, published in 1902, contained the diseases of the fetus while Volume 2 (1904) focused on the embryo. The second volume contained the anatomy and physiology of the fetus, as well as, the social impact of human malformations. He evaluated monsters in the light of embryonic development. Ballantyne stressed that the cause of the birth defect should be the physicianÕs/scientistÕs primary focus because this knowledge will aide in the prevention of future malformations.

Etienne Geoffroy de Saint-Hilaire (1772-1844) had a theory that God had one divine anatomical plan and all species of animals were slight variations of this plan which emerged over time. These variations were due to environmental alterations. He set out to explore his theory through altering the environment in which chicken eggs were incubated. He modified respiration, temperature and embryonic membranes with the hopes of hatching a reptile from an avian egg. Saint-Hilaire saw many malformations such as exencephaly, anencephaly and spina bifida. Still, he was unable to prove that species modifications are a result of environmental alteration. In his mind, he failed, yet he opened the door for many future experimental teratologists.

The experimental teratology of the early 20th century focused on environmental agents which in turn alter embryonic development such as, temperature, pharmaceuticals, microbial toxins, etc.. Camille Dareste (1891) determined that different teratogenic agents will result in similar developmental alterations through developmental arrest. Dareste had a goal of experimentally transforming embryos. He tried varnishing eggs, refrigeration, concussions, electricity, heat, magnetism and different chemicals. Dareste saw many malformations yet not one in particular so his work was disregarded by the scientific community of the early 1900Õs. He has gone down in history as one of the first true experimental teratologists.

Stockard (1931) continued these experiments using embryos of multiple species (avian, reptiles, fish, and amphibians) determining that the time of embryonic exposure to a teratogen will change its influence on development. However, the general public still believed that the placenta could protect mammalian embryos from teratogens.

By 1930-1940 experimental teratology expanded to include mammalian embryos. They experimented with decreased maternal nutrients, viruses, and multiple chemicals. Hale, in 1935, published a report of cleft palate in the offspring of sows with decreased vitamin A in their diet. Warkany (1940) observed developmental alterations in rat pups due to nutritional deficiencies in pregnant rats, as well as, other chemically and physically induced birth defects in mammals.

Finally, Gregg (1941) defined the rubella virus as the first recognized human teratogen. Infants in Austria exposed to the rubella virus in utero had increased eye, heart and ear defects as well as decreased IQ and speech impediments.