Philipp Franz von Walther (3 January 1782 – 29 December 1849) was a German

surgeon In modern medicine, a surgeon is a medical professional who performs surgery. Although there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon usually is also a licensed physician or received the same medical training as ...

and

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

Biography

He was born in

Burrweiler Burrweiler is a municipality in the Südliche Weinstraße district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. References

Municipalities in Rhineland-Palatinate Südliche Weinstraße {{SüdlicheWeinstraße-geo-stub ...

. He studied medicine in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

under

Georg Joseph Beer Georg Joseph Beer (23 December 1763 – 11 April 1821) was an Austrian ophthalmologist. He is credited with introducing a flap operation for treatment of cataracts (Beer's operation), as well as popularizing the instrument used to perform the su ...

and Johann Peter Frank, obtaining his

medical doctorate Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. T ...

in 1803 from the

University of Landshut The University of Applied Sciences Landshut (''Hochschule für angewandte Wissenschaften Landshut'') is a Fachhochschule in Landshut, between Munich and Regensburg, with over 5000 students and over 100 professor Professor (commonly abbr ...

. He subsequently served as a professor at the Universities of

Bamberg Bamberg (, , ; East Franconian: ''Bambärch'') is a town in Upper Franconia, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main. The town dates back to the 9th century, when its name was derived from the nearby ' castle. C ...

, Landshut,

Bonn The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr r ...

(1818–1830), and

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

.ADB: Walther, Philipp Franz von
at

Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie ''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'' (ADB, german: Universal German Biography) is one of the most important and comprehensive biographical reference works in the German language. It was published by the Historical Commission of the Bavarian Aca ...

Among his better known students were

Johannes Peter Müller Johannes Peter Müller (14 July 1801 – 28 April 1858) was a German physiologist, comparative anatomy, comparative anatomist, ichthyology, ichthyologist, and herpetology, herpetologist, known not only for his discoveries but also for his ability ...

(1801–1858) at

, and

Johann Lukas Schönlein Johann Lukas Schönlein (30 November 1793 – 23 January 1864) was a German naturalist, and professor of medicine, born in Bamberg. He studied medicine at Landshut, Jena, Göttingen, and Würzburg. After teaching at Würzburg and Zurich, he was ...

(1793–1864) and

Cajetan von Textor Cajetan von Textor (28 December 1782 – 7 August 1860) was a German surgeon born in the Ebersberg district of Upper Bavaria. From 1804 to 1808 he studied at the University of Landshut, where he was a pupil of Philipp Franz von Walther (1782– ...

(1782–1860) at Landshut. Walther is best known for his pioneer work in

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

and

ophthalmic surgery Eye surgery, also known as ophthalmic or ocular surgery, is surgery performed on the eye or its adnexa, by an ophthalmologist or sometimes, an optometrist. Eye surgery is synonymous with ophthalmology. The eye is a very fragile organ, and requ ...

. In 1826 he described the first

tarsorrhaphy Tarsorrhaphy is a surgical procedure in which the eyelids are partially sewn together to narrow the eyelid opening. It may be done to protect the cornea in cases of corneal exposure, as a treatment for Graves' ophthalmopathy, Möbius syndrome or ...

for closure of a portion of the

eyelid An eyelid is a thin fold of skin that covers and protects an eye. The levator palpebrae superioris muscle retracts the eyelid, exposing the cornea to the outside, giving vision. This can be either voluntarily or involuntarily. The human eyel ...

s for partial

ectropion Ectropion is a medical condition in which the lower eyelid turns outwards. It is one of the notable aspects of newborns exhibiting congenital Harlequin-type ichthyosis, but ectropion can occur due to any weakening of tissue of the lower eyelid. ...

. In the treatise ''Ueber die Hornhautflecken'', he gave an early account of

corneal opacity The human cornea is a transparent membrane which allows light to pass through it. The word corneal opacification literally means loss of normal transparency of cornea. The term corneal opacity is used particularly for the loss of transparency of c ...

. With

Karl Ferdinand von Gräfe Karl Ferdinand von Gräfe, (8 March 1787 – 4 July 1840, was a German surgeon from Warsaw. He was the father of ophthalmologist Albrecht von Graefe (1828–1870) and grandfather of politician Albrecht von Graefe (1868-1933). Biography Grä ...

(1787–1840), he was co-editor of ''Journal der Chirurgie und Augenheilkunde'', an influential journal of surgery and ophthalmology. Walther is credited with performing numerous experiments involving medical

galvanism Galvanism is a term invented by the late 18th-century physicist and chemist Alessandro Volta to refer to the generation of electric current by chemical action. The term also came to refer to the discoveries of its namesake, Luigi Galvani, specif ...

. He died in

Selected works

* ''Ueber die therapeutische Indication und den Techniscismus der galvanischen Operation'', 1803. * ''Ueber das Alterthum der Knochenkrankheiten'', 1825. * ''Ectropicum anguli oculi externi, eine neue Augenkrankheit und die Tarsoraphie, eine neue Augen-Operation'' (Ectropicum anguli externi oculi, a new eye disease and tarsorrhaphy, a new eye surgery), 1826. * ''Ueber die Trepanation nach Kopfverletzungen'' (On

trepanation Trepanning, also known as trepanation, trephination, trephining or making a burr hole (the verb ''trepan'' derives from Old French from Medieval Latin from Greek , literally "borer, auger"), is a surgical intervention in which a hole is drill ...

for head injuries), 1831. * ''Die Lehre vom schwarzen Star und seine Heilart''; ''Pathologie und Therapie der Amarose'' (Pathology and treatment of

amaurosis Amaurosis (Greek meaning ''darkening'', ''dark'', or ''obscure'') is vision loss or weakness that occurs without an apparent lesion affecting the eye. It may result from either a medical condition or excess acceleration, as in flight. The term is t ...

), 1840. * ''Ueber die Amaurose nach Superciliar-Verletzungen'', 1840. * ''Ueber die Revaccination'' (Involving re-vaccination), 1844. * ''Ueber die Hornhautflecken'' (About spots on 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 power ...

), 1845. * ''Kataraktologie, Beobachtung einer Cornea conica im chirurgisch-ophthalmologischen Klinikum in München'' (Observation of a cornea conica in the surgical eye hospital at Munich), 1846. * ''Wieder-Anheilung einer ganz abgehauenen Nase'' (S.521-235, 1 Taf.). and ''Nachricht über die Anheilung einer, zwei Stunden lang völlig abgetrennten Nase; ein Sendschreiben des R.Markiewicz an C.F. Graefe'' (S.536-537).

References

External links

*
Genealogy Database Entry
Philipp Franz von Walther

Ophthalmic surgery
by Charles Heady Beard, article on tarsorrhaphy. {{DEFAULTSORT:Walther, Phillip Franz von 1782 births 1849 deaths People from Südliche Weinstraße German ophthalmologists German surgeons German untitled nobility Academic staff of the University of Bamberg Academic staff of the University of Bonn Academic staff of the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich