Murphey’s teat: history and insight into an enigmatic cerebrovascular eponym

Abstract

Dr. Francis Murphey of the Semmes-Murphey Clinic in Memphis recognized that a focal sacculation on the dome of an aneurysm may be angiographic evidence of a culpable aneurysm in the setting of subarachnoid hemorrhage with multiple intracranial aneurysms present. This has been referred to as a Murphey’s “teat,” “tit,” or “excrescence.” With variability in terminology, misspellings in the literature, and the fact that Dr. Murphey did not formally publish this important work, the authors sought to clarify the meaning and investigate the origins of this enigmatic cerebrovascular eponym.