Rudolf Robert Maier (9 April 1824 – 7 November 1888) was a German

pathologist Pathology is the study of disease. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in the context of modern medical treatme ...

who was a native of

Freiburg im Breisgau Freiburg im Breisgau or simply Freiburg is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fourth-largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg after Stuttgart, Mannheim and Karlsruhe. Its built-up area has a population of abou ...

. He studied medicine at the

University of Freiburg The University of Freiburg (colloquially ), officially the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg (), is a public university, public research university located in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The university was founded in 1 ...

, where one of his instructors was

orthopedist Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics ( alternative spelling orthopaedics) is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgical and nonsurgical means to treat musculoskeletal ...

Louis Stromeyer Georg Friedrich Louis Stromeyer (6 March 1804 – 15 June 1876) was a German surgeon. He was born and died in Hanover. He was the son of surgeon Christian Friedrich Stromeyer (1761–1824).Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

with Carl Rokitansky (1804–1878),

Joseph Hyrtl Josef Hyrtl (7 December 1810 – 17 July 1894) was an Austrian anatomist. Biography Hyrtl was born at Kismarton, Hungary (now Eisenstadt, Austria). He began his medical studies in Vienna in 1831, having received his preliminary education in ...

(1810–1894) and

Josef Skoda Josef may refer to *Josef (given name) *Josef (surname) * ''Josef'' (film), a 2011 Croatian war film *Musik Josef Musik Josef is a Japanese manufacturer of musical instruments. It was founded by Yukio Nakamura and is the only company in Japan spec ...

(1805–1881), and in

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is, after Nuremberg and Fürth, the Franconia#Towns and cities, third-largest city in Franconia located in the north of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. It sp ...

under

Rudolf Virchow Rudolf Ludwig Carl Virchow ( ; ; 13 October 18215 September 1902) was a German physician, anthropologist, pathologist, prehistorian, biologist, writer, editor, and politician. He is known as "the father of modern pathology" and as the founder o ...

(1821–1902). Afterwards, he returned to Freiburg, where in 1859 he became an associate professor. He later attained a full professorship, and in 1864 founded the first institute of

pathological anatomy Anatomical pathology (''Commonwealth'') or anatomic pathology (''U.S.'') is a medical specialty that is concerned with the diagnosis of disease based on the gross examination, macroscopic, Histopathology, microscopic, biochemical, immu ...

at Freiburg. With

Adolf Kussmaul Adolf Kussmaul (; 22 February 1822 – 28 May 1902) was a German physician and a leading clinician of his time. Biography Adolf Kussmaul was born as the son and grandson of physicians in Graben near Karlsruhe and studied at Heidelberg. He ente ...

(1822–1902), Maier provided the first comprehensive description of periarteritis nodosa, a condition sometimes referred to as "Kussmaul-Maier disease". The two doctors described their findings in the inaugural edition of the journal ''Deutsches Archiv für klinische Medicin'', a publication co-founded by

Friedrich Albert von Zenker Friedrich Albert von Zenker (13 March 1825 – 13 June 1898) was a German Pathology, pathologist and physician, celebrated for his discovery of trichinosis. He was born in Dresden, and was educated in Leipzig and Heidelberg. While in Leipzig, he ...

(1825–1898) and

Hugo Wilhelm von Ziemssen Hugo (Wilhelm) von Ziemssen (13 December 1829 – 21 January 1902) was a German physician, born in Greifswald. He studied medicine at the universities of Greifswald, Berlin, and Würzburg. In 1863 he was called to the University of Erlangen as a ...

(1829–1902). He died in 1888 following a massive

goiter A goitre (British English), or goiter (American English), is a swelling in the neck resulting from an enlarged thyroid gland. A goitre can be associated with a thyroid that is not functioning properly. Worldwide, over 90% of goitre cases are ca ...

disease with

bronchoconstriction Bronchoconstriction is the constriction of the airways in the lungs due to the tightening of surrounding smooth muscle, with consequent coughing, wheezing, and shortness of breath. Causes The condition has a number of causes, the most common bei ...

Writings

Among Maier's written works were biographical treatises on 16th century physicians,

Johannes Schenck von Grafenberg file:Johannes Schenck von Grafenberg (1530-1598).png, Johannes Schenck von Grafenberg (Latin: Ioannes Schenckius) (June 20, 1530 – November 12, 1598) was a German physician. He studied at Tübingen, and was later a physician to the city of Freibu ...

(1530–1598) and

Michael Servetus Michael Servetus (; ; ; also known as ''Michel Servetus'', ''Miguel de Villanueva'', ''Revés'', or ''Michel de Villeneuve''; 29 September 1509 or 1511 – 27 October 1553) was a Spanish theologian, physician, cartographer, and Renaissance ...

(1511–1553). Other noted writings of his include: * ''Über den Bau der Thränenorgane, insbesondere der thränenleitenden Wege. 1 Teil. Thränenorgane des Menschen'', Freiburg 1859. * ''Über eine bisher nicht beschriebene eigenthümliche Arterienerkrankung (Periarteritis nodosa), die mit Morbus Brightii und rapid fortschreitender, allgemeiner Muskellähmung einhergeht''. (About a previously undescribed peculiar

arterial An artery () is a blood vessel in humans and most other animals that takes oxygenated blood away from the heart in the systemic circulation to one or more parts of the body. Exceptions that carry deoxygenated blood are the pulmonary arteries in ...

disease (periarteritis nodosa), which is associated with

Bright's disease Bright's disease is a historical classification of kidney diseases that are described in modern medicine as acute or chronic nephritis. It was characterized by swelling and the presence of albumin in the urine. It was frequently accompanied ...

and rapidly progressive generalized muscle

paralysis Paralysis (: paralyses; also known as plegia) is a loss of Motor skill, motor function in one or more Skeletal muscle, muscles. Paralysis can also be accompanied by a loss of feeling (sensory loss) in the affected area if there is sensory d ...

(with Adolf Kussmaul); Deutsches Archiv für klinische Medicin,

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

1866; 1: 484–518. * ''Lehrbuch der allgemeinen pathologischen Anatomie''. (Textbook of general

), Leipzig 1871.

Associated eponym

* "Maier's sinus": A depression in the internal surface of the

lacrimal sac The lacrimal sac or lachrymal sac is the upper dilated end of the nasolacrimal duct, and is lodged in a deep groove formed by the lacrimal bone and frontal process of the maxilla. It connects the lacrimal canaliculi, which drain tears from th ...

.Maier's sinus
@

Who Named It ''Whonamedit?'' is an online English-language dictionary of medical eponyms and the people associated with their identification. Though it is a dictionary, many eponyms and persons are presented in extensive articles with comprehensive bibliograp ...

References

* ''This article is based on a translation of an equivalent article from the

German Wikipedia The German Wikipedia () is the German-language edition of Wikipedia, a free and publicly editable online encyclopedia. Founded on 16 March 2001, it is the second-oldest Wikipedia edition (after the English Wikipedia). It has articles, ma ...

.''
Bibliography
@

1824 births 1888 deaths German pathologists Physicians from Freiburg im Breisgau Academic staff of the University of Freiburg {{Germany-med-bio-stub