1907: Schwalbe and Gredig, pupils of German pathologist Julius Arnold, described four cases of meningomyelocele and alterations in the brainstem and cerebellum, and gave the name "Arnold-Chiari" to these malformations. 1932: Van Houweninge Graftdijk was the first to report the surgical treatment of Chiari malformations. All patients died from surgery or postoperative complications. 1935: Russell and Donald suggested that decompression of the spinal cord at the foramen magnum might facilitate the CSF circulation. 1940: Gustafson and Oldberg diagnosed Chiari malformation with syringomyelia. 1974: Bloch et al. described the tonsils position to be classified between 7 mm and 8 mm below cerebellum. 1985: Aboulezz used MRI for discovery of extension

Society and culture
The condition was brought to the mainstream on the series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation in the tenth-season episode "Internal Combustion" on February 4, 2010. Chiari malformation was briefly mentioned on the medical drama House M.D. in the fifth-season episode "House Divided",  It was the focus of the sixth-season episode "The Choice." It is also the focus of Private Practice Season 4 episode 4, where a pregnant woman is diagnosed with it. It was the a cause of death on the reality television series Dr. G: Medical Examiner in the sixth-season episode "Bruised and Battered". It was also mentioned in the medical drama A Gifted Man, in the first-season episode "In Case of Separation Anxiety". It is also featured in the 3rd and 4th episode of the 7th season of the series Rizzoli & Isles where Dr. Maura Isles is diagnosed with the condition.
Chiari malformation (CM) is a structural defect in the cerebellum, characterized by a downward displacement of one or both cerebellar tonsils through the foramen magnum (the opening at the base of the skull). CMs can cause headaches, difficulty swallowing, vomiting, dizziness, neck pain, unsteady gait, poor hand coordination, numbness and tingling of the hands and feet, and speech problems. Less often, people may experience ringing or buzzing in the ears, weakness, slow heart rhythm, or fast heart rhythm, curvature of the spine (scoliosis) related to spinal cord impairment, abnormal breathing, such as central sleep apnea, characterized by periods of breathing cessation during sleep, and, in severe cases, paralysis.This can sometimes lead to non-communicating hydrocephalus as a result of obstruction of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) outflow. The cerebrospinal fluid outflow is caused by phase difference in outflow and influx of blood in the vasculature of the brain. The malformation is named for Austrian pathologist Hans Chiari. A type II CM is also known as an Arnold–Chiari malformation in honor of Chiari and German pathologist Julius Arnold. Signs and symptoms
Findings are due to brain stem and lower cranial nerve dysfunction. Onset of symptoms are less likely to be present during adulthood in most patients. Younger children generally have a substantially different presentation of clinical symptoms from older children. Younger children are more likely to have a more rapid neurological degeneration with profound brain stem dysfunction over several days. Neurogenic dysphagia: Difficulty swallowing. Seen by poor feeding in patient. Cyanosis: Bluish discoloration of skin while feeding.