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The pioneers of vestibular physiology in the 19th century

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 May 2024

Soumit Dasgupta Open the ORCID record for Soumit Dasgupta [Opens in a new window] ,
Marco Mandala ,
Enis Alpin Guneri ,
Marc Bassim  and
Alexander Andrea Tarnutzer
Soumit Dasgupta*
Affiliation:
Department of Paediatric Audiology, Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust and University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
Marco Mandala
Affiliation:
Department of Otology and Skull Base Surgery, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
Enis Alpin Guneri
Affiliation:
Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Dokuz Eylul University Faculty of Medicine, Izmir, Turkey
Marc Bassim
Affiliation:
Otolaryngology (ENT) and Head & Neck Surgery, Cleveland Clinic, Abu Dhabi, UAE
Alexander Andrea Tarnutzer
Affiliation:
Neurology, Cantonal Hospital of Baden, Baden, Switzerland and Faculty of Medicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
*
Corresponding author: Soumit Dasgupta; Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

It was known from ancient times that vertigo was a malady and that the inner ears of animals contained an intricate network of structures named the labyrinth, whose function was unknown. The flourishing of human vestibular anatomy in the Renaissance period still adhered to age-old notions of traditional spiritual philosophy. In the post-Renaissance period, when science was being redefined and challenging these traditional thoughts, vestibular physiology was born. Started by Flourens, it gathered momentum with Hogyes, Goltz, Breuer, Mach, Crum Brown, Ewald, Brown Sequard and Baginsky in the 19th century. They discovered the role of the vestibular organ in sensing balance and the fine intricacies of vestibular physiology valid to this day. Ménière shattered the concept of traditional aetiology of vertigo and de Cyon challenged the Kantian concept of space. The science catapulted to the modern century. This article traces the history of these pioneers of vestibular physiology.

Keywords

historical biographyinner earvertigophysiology
Type
Main Article
Information
The Journal of Laryngology & Otology , Volume 138 , Issue 11 , November 2024 , pp. 1108 - 1114
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of J.L.O. (1984) LIMITED

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Footnotes

Soumit Dasgupta takes responsibility for the integrity of the content of the paper

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