Hektoen International

A Journal of Medical Humanities

Improving the ophthalmoscope

Christian Georg Theodor Ruete (1810-1867) studied in Göttingen, Germany, and became full professor there in 1846 and in Leipzig from 1852 to 1867. He conducted extensive research on eye disorders and made modifications to the ophthalmoscope that Hermann von Helmholtz had invented in 1851, adding a concave focusing mirror that allowed a better view of the optic fundus. This illustration from his book on diseases of the eye shows the blood vessels in red and the optic disc as a light spot in the center.

Color illustration of the eye as viewed through the ophthalmoscope
Page from Bildliche Darstellung der Krankheiten des menschlichen Auges by Christian Georg Theodor Ruete. 1856. Hagstromerbiblioteket.

Fall 2019

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