Martha Parke Custis

For her niece, see Martha Parke Custis Peter.

Martha Parke Custis
Portrait of Martha Parke Custis, known as Patsy, at age 16
Portrait by Charles Willson Peale, 1772. This painting is kept at Mount Vernon.
Born1756 (1756)
White House Plantation, New Kent County, Virginia, British America
DiedJune 19, 1773(1773-06-19) (aged 17)
Mount Vernon, Fairfax County, Virginia, British America
Resting placeMount Vernon, Fairfax County, Virginia, U.S.
Other namesPatsy Custis
Parents
Relatives

Martha Parke Custis (1756 – June 19, 1773) was a stepdaughter of George Washington who died from an epileptic seizure at the age of 17, fifteen years before he was elected as the first president of the United States. She was the youngest child of Martha Custis, who later became known as Martha Washington, and Daniel Parke Custis, who died one year after she was born. She was called "Patsy" by her family.[1]

Analysis of George Washington's diary entries describing Patsy Custis's seizures and the treatments she received have led modern medical historians to conclude that the cause of death was SUDEP, or sudden unexpected death in epilepsy.[2][3][4] Her death is considered one of the first well-documented descriptions in history of SUDEP by a witness,[2][3] who happened to be George Washington.[2][5]

  1. ^ "Martha Parke Custis". Mount Vernon. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c Doherty, Michael J. (August 2004). "The sudden death of Patsy Custis, or George Washington on sudden unexplained death in epilepsy". Epilepsy & Behavior. 5 (4): 598–600. doi:10.1016/j.yebeh.2004.03.010. PMID 15256201.
  3. ^ a b Scorza, Fulvio Alexandre; Cysneiros, Roberta Monterazzo; de Albuquerque, Marly; Scattolini, Marcello; Arida, Ricardo Mario (January 2011). "Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy: an important concern". Clinics. 66 (Suppl 1): 65–69. doi:10.1590/S1807-59322011001300008. PMC 3118439. PMID 21779724.
  4. ^ Matschke, J.; Glatzel, M; Püschel, K.; Andresen, H. (2010). "Todesfälle bei Patienten mit Epilepsie". Rechtsmedizin (in German). 20 (5): 437–446. doi:10.1007/s00194-009-0651-y. S2CID 29453157.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference :6 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).