Otto Heinrich Enoch Becker (3 May 1828 – 7 February 1890) was a German

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 ...

born near Ratzeburg.

Education and Career

In 1859 he earned his medical doctorate from the University of Vienna, where he studied under

Carl Ferdinand von Arlt Carl Ferdinand Ritter von Arlt (April 18, 1812 – March 7, 1887) was an Austrian ophthalmologist born in Ober-Graupen, a village near Teplitz (Teplice) in Bohemia. He earned his doctorate in Prague in 1839, and later became a professor of opht ...

(1812-1887). Beginning in 1867 he was a professor of ophthalmology at the University of Heidelberg. Becker was a pioneer in ophthalmic pathology, and the author of numerous writings on the

eye 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 several photo response functions that are independent of vision. Eyes detect light and conv ...

. His many publications include treatises on the vessels of the macula lutea, congenital total color blindness, strictures of the

lacrimal canaliculi The lacrimal canaliculi, (sing. canaliculus), are the small channels in each eyelid that drain lacrimal fluid, from the lacrimal puncta to the lacrimal sac. This forms part of the lacrimal apparatus that drains lacrimal fluid from the surface of ...

and manifestations involving the movement of blood in the retina. He also completed Arlt's

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life. It is a form of biography. Definition The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English peri ...

, "''Meine Erlebnisse''", following the death of his former teacher, and in 1866, published a German edition of

Franciscus Cornelis Donders Franciscus (Franz) Cornelius Donders FRS FRSE (27 May 1818 – 24 March 1889) was a Dutch ophthalmologist. During his career, he was a professor of physiology in Utrecht, and was internationally regarded as an authority on eye diseases, directi ...

' work "On the Anomalies of Accommodation and Refraction of the Eye" ( London, 1864) as "''Die Anomalien der Accommodation und Refraktion des Auges''". In addition, he published a large number of anatomist

Heinrich Müller Heinrich Müller may refer to: * Heinrich Müller (cyclist) (born 1926), Swiss cyclist * Heinrich Müller (footballer, born 1888) (1888–1957), Swiss football player and manager * Heinrich Müller (footballer, born 1909) (1909–2000), Austrian ...

's medical papers in a collection titled "''Heinrich Müller's gesammelte und hinterlassene Schriften zur Anatomie und Physiologie des Auges''" (Heinrich Müller's collected and bequeathed writings on the anatomy and physiology of the eye). Dr.

José Rizal José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda (, ; June 19, 1861 – December 30, 1896) was a Filipino nationalist, writer and polymath active at the end of the Spanish colonial period of the Philippines. He is considered the national he ...

(1861-1896), martyr and national hero of the Philippines, completed his ophthalmological studies under Professor Becker at the University Eye Clinic Heidelberg in 1886. Dr.

Herman Bendell Dr. Herman Bendell (28 October 1843 - 14 November 1932) was an American physician active during and after the American Civil War, serving with both the 6th New York Heavy Artillery and the 86th New York Infantry. Dr. Bendell served with the Army ...

(1843-1932), American Civil War surgeon, Superintendent of Indian Affairs Arizona Territory, and American Consul in Elsinore, Denmark, studied for a year with Professor Becker at the University of Heidelberg in the 1870s. In 1887 Becker established the "Graefe Museum" at the University of Heidelberg in honor of oculist Albrecht von Graefe (1828-1870). In 1879 he introduced the concept "''cataracta complicata''" to describe

lenticular Lenticular is an adjective often relating to lenses. It may refer to: * A term used with two meanings in botany: see * Lenticular cloud, a lens-shaped cloud * Lenticular galaxy, a lens-shaped galaxy * Lenticular (geology), adjective describing a ...

changes that often appear in various ocular diseases — these are generally characterized by punctate, striate or diffuse opacities often accompanied with a polychromatic luster.
Indian Journal of Ophthalmology, Effect of endotoxins on rabbit lens Angra SK, Kunnatur S, Mathur

Associated eponyms

* "Becker's phenomenon": Pulsation of the retinal arteries in Graves disease, Basedow's disease. * "Becker's test": A test for astigmatism that uses diagrams of sets of three lines radiating in different meridians.

References

''Otto Heinrich Enoch Becker''
@ Who Named It

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Becker, Otto Heinrich Enoch German ophthalmologists 1828 births 1890 deaths Academic staff of Heidelberg University University of Vienna alumni