The tropical spastic paraparesis (TSP) is a chronic myelopathy, predominant in the tropics, recently known to be of retroviral origin (HTLV-I). This paper aims at delineating the clinico-etiological evolution of this entity. The historical analysis of it showed that the TSP has had, along decades, many different denominations and the discovery of the retroviral origin for some of them has stimulated new paths of research and epidemiological interest in the tropics and Brazil.
tropical spastic paraparesis; HTLV-I; historical evolution; perspectives; Brazil