Repository

ULS Archives & Special Collections

Title

Peter J. Jannetta Papers

Creator

Jannetta, Peter J.

Collection Number

UA.90.F113

Extent

124.5 Linear Feet 100 boxes

Extent

384 Megabytes 748 Files

Date

1953-2016

Abstract

Peter J. Jannetta (1932-2016) was a neurosurgeon who specialized in cranial nerve disorders. He developed the surgical procedure microvascular decompression, which became widely used to treat cranial nerve disorders such as trigeminal neuralgia and hemifacial spasm. He was chairman of the Department of Neurological Surgery at University of Pittsburgh from 1973 until 1997. This collection includes correspondence, offprints of Jannetta's publications, draft manuscripts, research files, and material documenting his career and engagement in professional organizations.

Language

The material in this collection is in English.

Author

Ben Snyder

Publisher

ULS Archives & Special Collections

Address

University of Pittsburgh Library System
Archives & Special Collections
Website: library.pitt.edu/archives-special-collections
Business Number: 412-648-3232 (Thomas) | 412-648-8190 (Hillman)
Contact Us: www.library.pitt.edu/ask-archivist
URL: http://library.pitt.edu/archives-special-collections

Biographical / Historical

Peter J. Jannetta was a neurosurgeon with special focus on the cranial nerves. He is most well-known for developing the surgical procedure microvascular decompression, also known as the Jannetta procedure, which is used to treat trigeminal neuralgia, hemifacial spasm, and other disorders of the cranial nerves. He was chairman of the Department of Neurological Surgery at University of Pittsburgh from 1973 until 1997, having a lasting influence upon its development.

Jannetta was born in Philadelphia on April 5, 1932. He would later grow up in Haddonfield, New Jersey and York, Pennsylvania. He attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he attained an A.B. in 1953 and an M.D. in 1957. After graduation he held various positions as a resident, fellow and instructor at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, before moving to Los Angeles in 1963 to work at the University of California Los Angeles Center for Health Sciences, becoming a chief resident in neurosurgery there. It was during this time at UCLA that Jannetta first performed a microvascular decompression, using it as treatment for both hemifacial spasm and trigeminal neuralgia. The procedure and his theory of causation by neurovascular compression was at first met with wide skepticism among neurosurgeons, only later gaining common acceptance. He would go on to explore other uses of the procedure to treat potentially neurogenic varieties of disorders such as vertigo, tinnitus, hypertension and type 2 diabetes (also known as noninsulin dependent diabetes mellitus). Throughout his career he published widely both in order to confirm and explain his initial uses of microvascular decompression, as well as to explore other experimental uses.

From 1966 to 1971 Jannetta was associate professor and chief of the division of neurosurgery at Louisiana State University. In 1971 he accepted a professorship at the University of Pittsburgh, becoming chairman of the Department of Neurological Surgery in 1973. He continued at the university as professor and chairman until 1997 when he became chairman emeritus. Jannetta trained forty-nine residents, four of whom would become department chairmen. From 1995 to 1996 he was also Secretary of Health for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania under Governor Tom Ridge. In 2000, he retired from his position at the University of Pittsburgh and became vice chairman in the department of neurosurgery at Allegheny General Hospital, also becoming a professor at Drexel University. During his time at Allegheny General Hospital, he continued exploring experimental treatments for such things as type 2 diabetes. In the 1990s and 2000s he tried to further commercialize his medical practice and surgical innovations; as part of this effort he founded multiple companies, such as Galen Medical and Jannetta Clinics.

Jannetta's first marriage was to Ann Bowman Jannetta, a professor of history at The University of Pittsburgh. After their divorce he would go on to marry the art critic Diana Jannetta. He had six children: Susan, Joanne Lenert, Carol Jannetta Alpers, Elizabeth, Peter T., and Michael Jannetta.

Jannetta died on April 11, 2016. The University of Pittsburgh holds an annual Peter J. Jannetta Lecture on innovations in neurosurgery to honor his legacy, and the Department of Neurological Surgery has an endowed chair in his name.

Scope and Contents

This collection contains material either created or acquired by Peter J. Jannetta, primarily documenting his neurosurgical career and covering his research into cranial nerve disorders, innovations in their surgical treatment, and other hospital and academic work. Materials extend throughout his career, from his time as a medical student at the University of Pennsylvania through the end of his life, with the bulk of records stretching from the 1970s to the 2000s, when he was working in Pittsburgh. There are drafts and published versions of his writing and research projects that helped bring the surgical procedure of microvascular decompression into mainstream acceptance as a treatment for such disorders as trigeminal neuralgia and hemifacial spasm. There is also a wide amount of material concerning his further research into potential uses of microvascular decompression for such disorders as essential hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and Parkinson's disease. There are administrative records pertaining to Jannetta's faculty and hospital positions. There are also correspondence, agendas, and minutes deriving from various professional meetings as well as other records from organizations Jannetta participated in, most prominently the Trigeminal Neuralgia Association (now the Facial Pain Association), the Horatio Alger Association, and the Maya Angelou Research Center. There are also records regarding medical companies Jannetta founded in the 1990s and 2000s in an effort to commercialize his medical practice, documenting the financial and legal challenges he encountered there. Other materials further document Jannetta's professional and personal life, including correspondence with various physicians, professional collaborators, friends, and family.

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Ben Snyder and Charlotte Byrne in 2022 and 2023. The electronic portion of the collection was processed by S. Elliot Maxwell in July 2024.

Acquisition Information

Gift of Diana Jannetta in 2017.

Preferred Citation

Peter J. Jannetta Papers, 1953-2016, UA.90.F113, University Archives, Archives & Special Collections, University of Pittsburgh Library System

Copyright

The University of Pittsburgh holds the property rights to the material in this collection, but the copyright may still be held by the original creator/author. Researchers are therefore advised to follow the regulations set forth in the U.S. Copyright Code when publishing, quoting, or reproducing material from this collection without the consent of the creator/author or that go beyond what is allowed by fair use.

Access Restrictions

Access to all files in Series I. Correspondence and select files in Series IV. Career, Series V. Professional Organizations, Series VI. Medical Companies, and Series VIII. Biographical require a signed Confidentiality Agreement due to the presence of incidental health care information. The Access Restrictions notes for Series IV., V., and VI. specify the files with these restrictions.

Files that are in Box 34 of this collection contain more sensitive medical information. These files are included in Series II., III., and IV. All files in Series X. Patient Records are similarly more restricted. In order to access these files, a researcher must submit a Request for Access to Restricted Material in Collections with Sensitive Medical Information. Please contact Archives & Special Collections to receive the form.

Arrangement

The Peter J. Jannetta Papers is divided into the following series:

I. Correspondence

II. Publications

III. Research

IV. Career

V. Professional Organizations and Meetings

VI. Medical Companies

VII. Patent Applications

VIII. Biographical

IX. Photographs

X. Patient Records

XI. Audiovisual

Related Materials

Eugene N. Myers Papers, 1933-2023, UA.90.F116, University Archives, Archives & Special Collections, University of Pittsburgh Library System

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

Digital material in this collection must be accessed through the Archives & Special Collections Digital Reading Room. Most materials can be accessed on the researcher's personal computer, while restricted materials will be available only in the Archives Service Center on an A&SC device. Researchers may request access through the Aeon Research Portal by clicking on "View in Reading Room" for the desired folder in this finding aid.

Container List