Otto Veraguth

Who is Otto Veraguth?

Otto Veraguth was a Swiss neurologist.

In 1895 he received his doctorate at Zurich, where he trained under Constantin von Monakow. In 1900 he obtained his habilitation for neurology, and in 1918 was appointed associate professor of physical therapy at the University of Zurich. From 1922 to 1924 he was president of the Schweizerischen Neurologischen Gesellschaft.

In the 1900s he published a study of a phenomenon he called "psychogalvanic reflex" associated with observed changes in the electrical properties of the skin. In his research he noticed that emotional stimuli caused greater deflections on a galvanometer that was connected to the skin via electrodes than did neutral stimuli.

His name is associated with "Veraguth's fold", a fold of skin on the upper eyelid that purportedly is a characteristic of individuals suffering from depression. Veraguth used the terms "micro- and macroscopic aura" in association with epilepsy and migraine, in which objects and stimuli in the environment appear to be disproportionally small or large.