Max Joseph Oertel

Max Joseph Oertel (March 20, 1835 - July 17, 1897) was a significant German physician who was a native of Dillingen. He practiced medicine in Munich, where he became a professor (extraordinary) in 1876.

He is credited with being the first physician to use a laryngeal stroboscope for examination of the larynx. He combined a stroboscopic lamp with a laryngeal mirror in order to study "vocal movements" in different registers. Application of the strobe light allowed him to view the vibrating vocal cords in slow motion, thus enabling detailed views of the larynx in an open or closed position. Oertel also created several written works regarding cardiac, circulatory and obesity disorders, and was an early advocate of the "terrain cure", which is a set of therapeutic exercises that involve graduated hiking and climbing.

Oertel made contributions in regards to the study of diphtheria by reproducing the disease in laboratory rabbits. However, he was unable to locate the aetiology of the disease. In 1883 the causative microbe Corynebacterium diphtheriae was discovered by Dr. Edwin Klebs (1834-1913).

References:

 * Stroboscopy in Medicine
 * "Heirs of Hippocrates" Univ. of Iowa Library

Max Oertel