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Otitis media with effusion: Politzer's 100 year legacy
Albert Mudry1, John Riddington Young2
1Department of Otolaryngology, Head & Neck Surgery, Stanford University School of Medicine, 801 Welch Road Stanford, CA, 94305-5739, USA.
Abstract:
Otitis media with effusion has been the subject of a number of recent studies. It was first recognised during the second half of the 19th century, when Adam Politzer (1835-1920) of Vienna was one of the leading otologists of this period and a founding father of the specialty. He had emphasised in his textbook the importance of tympanoscopy, which had led to the recognition of what was then known as 'catarrh of the middle ear' as a clinical entity. Politzer's original illustrations and concise accounts give a clear image of the contemporary state of knowledge of the condition and its treatment, which includes myringotomy, adenoidectomy and the insertion of tympanostomy tubes. From his textbook we can also glean insight into the evolution of both otology as a specialty and OME in particular.
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