Louis Émile Javal (May 5, 1839 – January 20, 1907) was a French ophthalmologist born in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

. Javal is remembered for his studies of physiological

optics Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behaviour of visible, ultrav ...

and his work involving a disorder known as

strabismus Strabismus is a vision disorder in which the eyes do not properly align with each other when looking at an object. The eye that is focused on an object can alternate. The condition may be present occasionally or constantly. If present during a ...

Early life

He was born in Paris to Léopold Javal (1804-1872) and Auguste Javal (née von Lämel; 1817-1893).

Academic background

Originally trained as a civil engineer, he switched to the medical profession, receiving his degree from the

University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...

in 1868. Following graduation, he traveled to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

, where he studied under

Albrecht von Graefe Albrecht von Graefe may refer to: * Albrecht von Graefe (ophthalmologist) (1828-1870), Prussian opthalmologist * Albrecht von Graefe (politician) Albrecht von Graefe (1 January 1868 – 18 April 1933) was a German landowner and right-wing ...

(1828-1870). During the Franco-Prussian War he served as a medical officer. In 1878 he opened an ophthalmological laboratory at the

Sorbonne Sorbonne may refer to: * Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities. *the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970) *one of its components or linked institution, ...

and was its director until 1900. Like his father politically active, he represented the district of

Yonne Yonne () is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in France. It is named after the river Yonne, which flows through it, in the country's north-central part. One of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté's eight constituent departments, it is l ...

in the French Parliament from 1884 to 1889.

Contributions in ophthalmology

With his student Hjalmar August Schiøtz (1850-1927), he constructed an early keratometer, also known as the " Javal Schiötz ophthalmometer". This device is used to measure the curvature of the

cornea The cornea is the transparent front part of the eye that covers the iris, pupil, and anterior chamber. Along with the anterior chamber and lens, the cornea refracts light, accounting for approximately two-thirds of the eye's total optical ...

l surface of the eye, as well as to determine the extent and axis of

astigmatism Astigmatism is a type of refractive error due to rotational asymmetry in the eye's refractive power. This results in distorted or blurred vision at any distance. Other symptoms can include eyestrain, headaches, and trouble driving at n ...

. Javal also made important contributions in regards to the study of

eye tracking Eye tracking is the process of measuring either the point of gaze (where one is looking) or the motion of an eye relative to the head. An eye tracker is a device for measuring eye positions and eye movement. Eye trackers are used in research ...

, and with his assistant Marius Hans Erik Tscherning (1854-1939), he researched astigmatism and conducted studies in the field of

. Javal described eye movements during reading in the late 19th century. He reported that eyes do not move continuously along a line of text, but make short rapid movements (

saccades A saccade ( , French for ''jerk'') is a quick, simultaneous movement of both eyes Eyes are organs of the visual system. They provide living organisms with vision, the ability to receive and process visual detail, as well as enabling s ...

) intermingled with short stops ( fixations). Javal's observations were characterised by a reliance on naked-eye observation of eye movement in the absence of technology. Javal's interest in

was due to the disorder affecting his father and sister. Javal himself had heterochromia. At middle-age Javal developed

glaucoma Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that result in damage to the optic nerve (or retina) and cause vision loss. The most common type is open-angle (wide angle, chronic simple) glaucoma, in which the drainage angle for fluid within the eye rem ...

, and by 1900 was totally blind after suffering repeated attacks of acute angle-closure. He was a friend of Ludwik Łazarz Zamenhof (1859-1917), the inventor of Esperanto, and he stressed the importance of learning this language by the blind. In addition, he was involved in

social reform A reform movement or reformism is a type of social movement that aims to bring a social or also a political system closer to the community's ideal. A reform movement is distinguished from more radical social movements such as revolutionary move ...

issues that included education and circumstances surrounding the poor. Today the "Louis Emile Javal Silver Service Distinction" is issued by the International Contact Lens Council of Ophthalmology. Javal died of stomach cancer and donated his left eye to histopathological research in England where, however, it got lost without a report being published.Rohrbach JM: Emile Javal (1839-1907) and his glaucoma blindness - a Life for Politics, Publishing, Vision Research, and Blind Fellow Men. Klinische Monatsblätter für Augenheilkunde 2011; 228: 166-169.

Personal life

He married Maria Anna Ellissen (1847–1933) on July 30 1867. They had five children: Alice Anna (1869–1943), twins Jeanne Félicie (1871–1956) and Jean-Félix (1871–1915), Adolphe (1873–1944) and Mathilde Julie (1876–1944). His daughter Alice married

Lazare Weiller Lazare Weiller (20 July 1858 – 12 August 1928) was a French engineer, industrialist and politician. He was born in Alsace and received a technical education in England and in his cousin's copper factory in Angoulême. He was very interested in th ...

and was the mother of four children (one of whom was Paul-Louis Weiller). Another daughter, Jeanne Félicie, married Paul Louis Weiss and was the mother of six children (including

Louise Weiss Louise or Luise may refer to: * Louise (given name) Arts Songs * "Louise" (Bonnie Tyler song), 2005 * "Louise" (The Human League song), 1984 * "Louise" (Jett Rebel song), 2013 * "Louise" (Maurice Chevalier song), 1929 *"Louise", by Clan of ...

and Jenny Aubry).

Bibliography

* ''Du strabisme, dans ses applications à la théorie de la vision''. Doctoral dissertation, Paris, 1868. * ''Un opthalmomètre pratique'', Annales d’oculistique, L. E. Javal, H. Schiötz: Paris, 1881, 86: 5-21. * ''Manuel du strabisme''. Paris, 1896. * ''Entre aveugles''; Paris, 1903. translated into German, English and Esperanto. * ''Physiologie de la lecture et de l’écriture''. Paris, 1905; bibliography in Annales d’oculistique, Paris, 1907, 137: 187.

References

Weblinks

''Louis Émile Javal''
@

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Javal, Louis Emile French ophthalmologists 1839 births 1907 deaths 19th-century French Jews University of Paris alumni Physicians from Paris French military personnel of the Franco-Prussian War Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery