Science Julius Caesar may have suffered mini-strokes, say doctors Centuries-old diagnosis of epilepsy may be overturned by new research which suggests that Caesar suffered a number of strokes Doctors at Imperial College claim that a diagnosis of mini-strokes makes sense of symptoms described in Greek and Roman writings. Photograph: Walter Sanders/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Image 
 
 Health problems that blighted the Roman general Julius Caesar may have resulted from a spate of mini-strokes, according to a fresh review of his symptoms. 
 
 The great military leader, who was instrumental in the rise of the Roman empire, suffered a host of medical ailments, from vertigo, dizziness and insensibility to limb weakness that on occasion caused him to fall over. 
 
 In one of the most prominent incidents, Caesar collapsed at the battle of Thapsus in 46BC and had to be carried to safety. In his biography of Caesar, the Greek historian Plutarch suggested the fall was an epileptic attack. 
 
 The diagnosis has prevailed for centuries since, though scholars have not been short of other proposals, including bad migraines and seizures brought on by malaria or a parasitic brain infection caught during his Egyptian campaign. 
 
 But doctors at Imperial College, London, argue in new research that the symptoms described in Greek and Roman writings point to a different diagnosis entirely. They believe that rather than suffering from late onset epilepsy, Julius Caesar had a number of mini-strokes that damaged him physically and triggered changes in his mental state too. 
 
 “All of the symptoms reported in Caesar’s life are compatible with him having multiple mini-strokes,” said Francesco Galassi, a medical doctor at Imperial who conducted the analysis with Hutan Ashrafian, a surgeon at the college. 
 
 Born in 100BC, Caesar rose swiftly through the political system, conquered Gaul, and crossed the Rubicon river under arms, sparking the civil war that ultimately left him dictator of Rome. But his rule was cut short when he was assassinated in the Senate on March 15, 44BC. 
 
 Until now, the possibility that Caesar suffered from cardiovascular disease, or was prone to strokes, has been largely ruled out because he was apparently otherwise well in private and state affairs. 
 
 But Galassi and Ashrafian claim that a series of mini-strokes could explain incidents recorded by scholars that epilepsy cannot. Towards the end of his life, Caesar suffered from depression and his personality changed, potentially through damage to his brain caused by strokes. 
 
 A mini-stroke may also have led to Caesar’s apparently emotional response to a speech by Cicero in his later years. Caesar’s complexion changed, he began to shake, and he dropped a handful of documents on hearing the great orator. Another attack might account for his failure to stand up as senators honoured him, an act that was interpreted as defiant. 
 
 “The idea that he was epileptic is unfounded,” Galassi told the Guardian. “We think others start from the assumption that he had epilepsy. Our theory is simpler and more logical,” he said. 
 
 The doctors see support for their theory in the works of Pliny the Elder, who noted that both Caesar’s father and another forefather died without apparent cause while putting on their shoes. The deaths could have resulted from epilepsy, but Galassi and Ashrafian argue in the journal Neurological Sciences that a stroke or heart attack seem more likely. 
 
 “Even if Caesar participated in an active lifestyle and may have benefited from a Mediterranean diet, there is the added possibility of genetic predisposition towards cardiovascular disease,” the doctors write. 
 
 At the time of Caesar’s reign, epilepsy was considered a “sacred disease”, and it may have suited him, and his chosen heir, Octavian, to maintain that he suffered from the disorder. The doctors argue that for a man of Caesar’s prominence, there are simply too few detailed accounts of his attacks for the diagnosis to be credible. 
 
 Christopher Pelling, professor of Greek at Oxford University, said that Caesar’s disease has long been thought of as epilepsy. “I’ve no idea if it’s medically plausible, but it’s interesting, and it would matter,” he said. “Any physical ailment wouldn’t have helped, whether it was epilepsy of something else.” ||||| Has the diagnosis of a stroke been overlooked in the symptoms of Julius Caesar? 
 
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 Malaria 
 
 Syphilis 
 
 Mediterranean Diet 
 
 Sudden Unexpected Death 
 
 Syncopic Episode 
 
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 Caesar, who lived from 100 to 44 BC, has long been the focus of medical debate, with the common assumption being that he suffered from epilepsy (AFP) 
 
 Roman emperor Julius Caesar may have suffered a series of mini-strokes, explaining his dark mood in later life, according to doctors at London’s Imperial College. 
 
 Caesar, who lived from 100 to 44 BC, has long been the focus of medical debate, with the common assumption being that he suffered from epilepsy. 
 
 But medical experts from the London university have reexamined his symptoms, which included vertigo, dizziness and limb weakness, and concluded that he may have in fact suffered from a cardiovascular complaint. 
 
 “To date, possible cardiovascular explanations have always been ruled out on the grounds that until his death he was supposedly otherwise physically well during both private and stately affairs,” said an excerpt of the study written by Francesco Galassi and Hutan Ashrafian. 
 
 “When re-evaluating his symptoms, it can be noted that Caesar suffered falls during his campaigns in Spain and Africa at Cordoba and Thapsus,” it added. 
 
 “He reported symptoms of headaches, vertigo and later on mentioned giddiness and insensibility, when he could not stand up as senators honoured him.” 
 
 Caesar famously collapsed at the Battle of Thapsus in 46BC and had to be carried to safety. 
 
 “All of the symptoms reported in Caesar’s life are compatible with him having multiple mini-strokes,” Galassi told The Guardian newspaper. 
 
 The doctors, who researched ancient works including those by Roman scholar Pliny the Elder, also suggested that damage to the brain caused by the mini-strokes could have led to his changing personality and depression in later life. 
 
 Epilepsy was considered a “sacred disease” during the time of Caesar’s reign, possibly influencing the diagnosis of his condition, they argued. 
 
 One of history’s great military and political figures, Caesar helped Rome conquer Gaul before triggering a civil war by defying the Senate, where he was assassinated.
– Julius Caesar crumpled to the ground during the Battle of Thapsus in 46BC, and theories for the dizziness and limb weakness said to have caused that fall have ranged from epilepsy to malaria seizures and parasitic infection, the Guardian notes. But now two Imperial College London researchers have proposed his vertigo and subsequent personality changes may have been the result of mini-strokes, the AFP reports. The study in Neurological Sciences posits that even though a series of small cardiovascular failures makes more sense than the prevailing epilepsy theory, the explanation has been widely ignored "on the grounds that until his death he was supposedly otherwise physically well during both private and stately affairs." In addition to Caesar's reported physical symptoms—including the vertigo and headaches, as well as "giddiness and insensibility"—the researchers note a seemingly significant change in the Roman statesman's mental state as the years went on: He apparently suffered from depression, which they believe may have been caused by stroke-induced brain damage. The scientists point out research suggesting both Caesar's father and another relative died suddenly while putting their shoes on, and that "even if Caesar participated in an active lifestyle and may have benefited from a Mediterranean diet, there is the added possibility of genetic predisposition toward cardiovascular disease," per the Guardian. (Caesar was the guy behind leap year.)