Burchard David Mauchart (19 April 1696 – 11 April 1751) was professor of

anatomy Anatomy () is the branch of morphology concerned with the study of the internal structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old scien ...

and

surgery Surgery is a medical specialty that uses manual and instrumental techniques to diagnose or treat pathological conditions (e.g., trauma, disease, injury, malignancy), to alter bodily functions (e.g., malabsorption created by bariatric surgery s ...

at the

University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (; ), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The University of Tübingen is one of eleven German Excellenc ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, and a pioneer in the field of

ophthalmology Ophthalmology (, ) is the branch of medicine that deals with the diagnosis, treatment, and surgery of eye diseases and disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Following a ...

. In 1748 he became one of the first to document the eye disorder now known as

keratoconus Keratoconus is an eye disorder in which the cornea, the transparent front part of the eye, gradually thins and bulges outward into a cone shape. This causes distorted vision, including blurry vision, double vision, increased nearsightedness, ...

. His surviving works are now to be found in the form of

theses A thesis (: theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: D ...

by his students. He obtained his Lic. Med. degree in 1722 at the

. Mauchart also studied for two years in Paris from 1718-1720 under the oculist Woolhouse.

References

* ''Biographisches Lexikon der hervorragenden Ärzte,'' Urban & Schwarzenberg, 1962, vol. 4, pp. 121–122. * '' Jöcher's Allgemeine Gelehrten Lexicon,'' Georg Jöntzen, 1810–1813, vol. 4 (suppl.), col 1014. * ''Nouvelle Biographie Générale,'' Firmin, Didot Frères, 1852–1866, vol. 34, col 341–342. * ''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie,'' Duncker & Humblot, 1967–1971, Reprint, vol. 20, p. 687. * ''Michaud Biographie Universelle'' (2nd Ed.), Delagrabe, 1843–1865, vol. 27, pp. 301–302. * ''Rebus Sci. Nat. Med.,'' 1752, 1(part 3), pp. 531–538. * F. Börner, ''Nachrichten von dem Vornehmsten Lebensumständen und Schriften Jetzlebender Berühmter Aerzte und Naturforscher,'' J. C. Meissner, 1749, vol. 1, pp. 345–363.

External links

* 1696 births 1751 deaths German ophthalmologists {{Germany-med-bio-stub